Immunohistochemical localisation of 14-3-3 σ protein in normal canine tissues

The 14-3-3 σ protein, also called stratifin, belongs to the highly conserved family of 14-3-3 acid proteins, which are involved in the modulation of diverse signal transduction pathways. Loss of 14-3-3 σ expression has been observed in several types of human cancers, suggesting that it may have a role as a tumour suppressor gene. The 14-3-3 σ protein has been localised in normal human tissues exclusively in various epithelial cell types. The aim of the study was to investigate the expression and the distribution pattern of 14-3-3 σ by immunohistochemical analysis in normal canine tissues. Immunohistochemical expression of 14-3-3 σ was demonstrated in several normal canine tissues with some minor differences of distribution pattern compared with human tissues. It appears that 14-3-3 σ is a very specific epithelial cell marker in normal canine tissues.