DatasheetSDS

Villin is a 95-kDa F-actin bundling and severing protein belongs to gelsolin family. Unlike the ubiquitously expressed gelsolin, villin expression is restricted to epithelial cells with a brush border, like epithelial cells of the intestinal mucosa, gall bladder, renal proximal tubules and ductuli efferentes of the testis. It is localized to the apical cytoplasm and brush borders of these cells. It can interact with actin in a Ca2+ and phosphoinositideregulated manner. Villin has been reported to be an epithelial cell-specific anti-apoptotic protein, and to have an important function in regulating actin dynamics, cell morphology, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transitions, cell migration and cell survival. Villin is a useful diagnostic marker for of various cancers, like cervical and endometrial adenocarcinomas, renal cell carcinoma. Villin is a very specific marker for adenocarcinomas of the gastrointestinal tract, pancreas, lung, prostate and ovary.