Orthochromasia

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In chemistry, orthochromasia is the property of a dye or stain that does not change color when binding to a target, as opposed to metachromatic stains, which do change color. The word is derived from the Greek orthos (correct, upright), and chromatic (color). Toluidine blue is an example of a partially orthochromatic dye, as it stains nucleic acids by its orthochromatic color (blue), but stains mast cell granules in its metachromatic color (red). In spectral terms, orthochromasia refers to maintaining the position of spectral peaks, while metachromasia refers to a shift in wavelength, becoming either shorter or longer. In photography, an orthochromatic light spectrum is one devoid of red light.

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