Thermo Fisher Scientific Cytokeratin, Pan Antibody Cocktail

Applications and Tested Dilution

• Application: Immunohistochemistry (Paraffin) (IHC (P))
• Tested Dilution: Ready-to-use (150–200 µL)

Product Specifications

Product Specific Information

This product is provided in a ready-to-use formulation. A recommended positive control tissue is pancreas, though other tissues may be suitable.
Intended for professional laboratory use in detecting cytokeratin proteins in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue sections using manual qualitative IHC methods.
This antibody is used following primary tumor diagnosis by conventional histopathology.

Twenty human cytokeratins are separated by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis into acidic (pI <5.7) and basic (pI >6.0) subfamilies:

• Acidic keratins: 56.5, 55, 51, 50, 50’, 48, 46, 45, 40 kDa
• Basic keratins: 65–67, 64, 59, 58, 56, 52 kDa

MAb AE1 recognizes acidic keratins (56.5, 50, 50’, 48, 40 kDa), while AE3 reacts with basic keratins (65–67, 64, 59, 58, 56, 52 kDa).
AE1/AE3 detects keratinized and corneal epidermis, stratified squamous epithelia, hyperproliferative keratinocytes, and simple epithelia.
This broad-spectrum anti-pan-keratin antibody cocktail differentiates epithelial from non-epithelial tumors.

Usage Notes

• Use with FFPE tissue sections.
• Pretreatment by heat-induced or enzymatic epitope retrieval is recommended.
• IHC staining visualizes antigens through sequential application of primary antibody, secondary antibody, enzyme complex, and chromogenic substrate.
• The chromogenic reaction produces a visible signal at the antigen site, interpreted under a light microscope.

Quality Control Recommendations

• A positive tissue control should be included in every staining run.
• Positive tissues should contain both positive and negative staining areas.
• External positive controls should be freshly prepared and processed identically to patient samples.
• Weakly positive control tissues are recommended to monitor reagent stability and staining sensitivity.
• Negative control tissues (internal or external) confirm absence of non-specific staining.

Target Information

Cytokeratin pan represents a subfamily of intermediate filament proteins found in epithelial tissues, encompassing at least 20 distinct polypeptides (40–68 kDa, pI 4.9–7.8).
Cytokeratin expression patterns are characteristic of epithelial type and differentiation stage, aiding in the classification of epithelial malignancies.
Cytokeratin antibodies are valuable tools for:

• Differential diagnosis of tumors via IHC
• Cytopathology
• Flow cytometric assays

The composition of cytokeratin pairs varies with epithelial cell type, differentiation stage, environment, and disease state.
Keratins are well-established markers in cancer research and tumor diagnostics.

For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures. Not for resale without express authorization.