TUBB3 (2E9) Antibody

TUBB3 (Tubulin beta 3) is a highly conserved protein with a molecular weight of ~50 kD. Tubulin is the major constituent of microtubules. It binds two moles of GTP, one at an exchangeable site on the beta chain and one at a non exchangeable site on the alpha-chain. Microtubules play key roles in chromosome segregation in mitosis, intracellular transport, ciliary and flagellar bending, and structural support of the cytoskeleton. The two main tubulin isoforms, α- and β-tubulin are usually products of separate genes. The β-tubulin family includes six expressed genes that produce the polypeptide isoforms known as Classes I through VI, each of which have a distinct pattern of expression. Class III β-tubulin is found in neurons and mammalian testis cells and is widely used as a neuronal marker in developmental neurobiology, neoplasia and stem cell research. Class III β-tubulin expression in neuronal and neuroblastic tumors is differentiation dependent, and its expression in certain non-neuronal neoplasms has been associated with poor prognosis and/or resistance to chemotherapy.