Anti-Cystatin A Antibody

Cystatin A is an endogenous cysteine protease inhibitor expressed in stratified squamous epithelia, sweat glands, saliva, and tears, and this rabbit polyclonal antibody from Antibodies.com enables its specific detection in human Western blot and immunohistochemistry workflows. Supplied as 100 µl at 1 mg/ml in PBS with 0.1% sodium azide and 50% glycerol, the unconjugated polyclonal reagent is ready to use in standard immunostaining and immunoblotting protocols.

Also known as Stefin A, the target protein runs at approximately 11 kDa and protects keratinocytes from uncontrolled lysosomal proteolysis. Investigators working in dermatology, oral pathology, and tumor biology apply this reagent to map loss of Cystatin A expression in oral squamous cell carcinoma biopsies, to differentiate cystic from solid epithelial lesions of the head and neck, and to characterize epidermal barrier defects in psoriatic and atopic dermatitis skin samples. Cystatin A is also under investigation as a biomarker in saliva and tear fluid, supporting noninvasive studies of epithelial stress and inflammation.

In IHC, the antibody produces cytoplasmic staining concentrated in the upper spinous and granular layers of normal epidermis. For Western blot, it cleanly resolves the ~11 kDa monomer in lysates from cultured epithelial cell lines and primary keratinocytes. The 50% glycerol buffer permits storage at -20°C with minimal freeze-thaw cycling, and the sodium azide preservative allows short-term use at 4°C for routine bench workflows. Each vial ships at the listed concentration, eliminating the need for a stock dilution step before standard immunohistochemistry protocols.