Progressive H&E staining occurs when the hematoxylin is applied to the tissue section without being followed by a differentiating solution to remove excess dye. The hematoxylin employed provides for the desired differentiation of nuclear detail.
Modified progressive H&E staining occurs when a mild differentiating solution is used not to remove excess stain from the nuclei, but rather to remove background staining. With the development of a modified progressive H&E staining method, the presence of a differentiating solution is not necessarily indicative of a regressive staining method.
