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Recombinant Human/Mouse/Rat Activin A Protein Best Seller

R&D Systems, part of Bio-Techne | Catalog # 338-AC

CHO derived
R&D Systems, part of Bio-Techne
Catalog #
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Carrier Free
338-AC-010/CF
338-AC-01M/CF
Show More Sizes
338-AC-500/CF
338-AC-050/CF
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Catalog #
Availability
Size / Price
Qty
With Carrier
338-AC-010
338-AC-01M
Show More Sizes
338-AC-050
338-AC-500
Show Fewer Sizes

Key Product Details

Source

CHO

Accession #

Structure / Form

Disulfide-linked homodimer

Conjugate

Unconjugated

Applications

Bioactivity

Product Specifications

Source

Chinese Hamster Ovary cell line, CHO-derived Activin A protein
Gly311-Ser426

Purity

>95%, by SDS-PAGE with silver staining.

Endotoxin Level

<0.01 EU per 1 μg of the protein by the LAL method.

N-terminal Sequence Analysis

Gly311

Predicted Molecular Mass

13 kDa (monomer)

SDS-PAGE

14 kDa, reducing conditions
24 kDa, non-reducing conditions

Activity

Measured by its ability to induce hemoglobin expression in K562 human chronic myelogenous leukemia cells. Schwall, R.H. et al. (1991) Method Enzymol. 198:340.
The ED50 for this effect is 0.200‑1.20 ng/mL.

Reviewed Applications

Read 13 reviews rated 4.7 using 338-AC in the following applications:

Formulation, Preparation and Storage

Carrier Free
What does CF mean?

CF stands for Carrier Free (CF). We typically add Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) as a carrier protein to our recombinant proteins. Adding a carrier protein enhances protein stability, increases shelf-life, and allows the recombinant protein to be stored at a more dilute concentration. The carrier free version does not contain BSA.

What formulation is right for me?

In general, we advise purchasing the recombinant protein with BSA for use in cell or tissue culture, or as an ELISA standard. In contrast, the carrier free protein is recommended for applications, in which the presence of BSA could interfere.

Carrier: 338-AC
Formulation Lyophilized from a 0.2 μm filtered solution in Acetonitrile and TFA with BSA as a carrier protein.
Reconstitution Reconstitute at 100-500 μg/mL in sterile 4 mM HCl.
Shipping The product is shipped at ambient temperature. Upon receipt, store it immediately at the temperature recommended below.
Stability & Storage Use a manual defrost freezer and avoid repeated freeze-thaw cycles.
  • 12 months from date of receipt, -20 to -70 °C as supplied.
  • 1 month, 2 to 8 °C under sterile conditions after reconstitution.
  • 3 months, -20 to -70 °C under sterile conditions after reconstitution.
Carrier Free: 338-AC/CF
Formulation Lyophilized from a 0.2 μm filtered solution in Acetonitrile and TFA.
Reconstitution Reconstitute at 100-500 µg/mL in sterile 4 mM HCl.
Shipping The product is shipped at ambient temperature. Upon receipt, store it immediately at the temperature recommended below.
Stability & Storage Use a manual defrost freezer and avoid repeated freeze-thaw cycles.
  • 12 months from date of receipt, -20 to -70 °C as supplied.
  • 1 month, 2 to 8 °C under sterile conditions after reconstitution.
  • 3 months, -20 to -70 °C under sterile conditions after reconstitution.

Background: Activin A

Activin and Inhibin are members of the TGF-beta superfamily of cytokines and are involved in a wide range of biological processes including tissue morphogenesis and repair, fibrosis, inflammation, neural development, hematopoiesis, reproductive system function, and carcinogenesis (1‑7). Activin and Inhibin are produced as precursor proteins. Their amino terminal propeptides are proteolytically cleaved and facilitate formation of disulfide-linked dimers of the bioactive proteins (8, 9). Activins are nonglycosylated homodimers or heterodimers of various beta subunits ( betaA, betaB, betaC, and betaE in mammals), while Inhibins are heterodimers of a unique alpha subunit and one of the beta subunits. Activin A is a widely expressed homodimer of two betaA chains. The betaA subunit can also heterodimerize with a betaB or betaC subunit to form Activin AB and Activin AC, respectively (10). The 14 kDa mature human betaA chain shares 100% amino acid sequence identity with bovine, feline, mouse, porcine, and rat betaA. 

Activin A exerts its biological activities by binding to the type 2 serine/threonine kinase Activin RIIA which then noncovalently associates with the type 1 serine/threonine kinase Activin RIB/ALK-4 (7, 11). Signaling through this receptor complex leads to Smad activation and regulation of activin-responsive gene transcription (7, 11). The bioactivity of Activin A is regulated by a variety of mechanisms (11). BAMBI, Betaglycan, and Cripto are cell‑associated molecules that function as decoy receptors or limit the ability of Activin A to induce receptor complex assembly (12‑14). The intracellular formation of Activin A can be prevented by the incorporation of the betaA subunit into Activin AC or Inhibin A (3, 10). And the bioavailability of Activin A is restricted by its incorporation into inactive complexes with alpha2-Macroglobulin, Follistatin, and FLRG (15, 16). 

Activin A is involved in the differentiation of various cell and tissue types. The induction of definitive endoderm by Activin A is required in differentiation protocols of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) (17, 18). In vitro models of human gametogenesis use prolonged Activin A supplementation to human embryonic stem cells for differentiation into human primordial germ cell-like cells (19). Activin A can also be used to maintain cells in vitro, as is the case for iPSC-derived nephron cells that can then be used in disease modeling, drug screening and in regenerative medicine (20). 

Activin A is an important factor for tumor cells to evade the immune system as Activin A can act on surrounding immune cells to decrease their antitumor activity (21). Activin A also promotes migration and growth of tumors, making it a target for cancer therapies (22). Specifically, research has shown that interfering with Activin A activity can assist in overcoming CD8 T-cell exclusion and immunotherapy resistance (23). In bone marrow-derived stem cell transplants for treatment of diabetes, Activin A enhances migration and homing of stem cells towards pancreatic lineage (24).

References

  1. Kumanov, P. et al. (2005) Reprod. Biomed. Online 10:786.
  2. Maeshima, A. et al. (2008) Endocr. J. 55:1.
  3. Rodgarkia-Dara, C. et al. (2006) Mutat. Res. 613:123.
  4. Werner, S. and C. Alzheimer (2006) Cytokine Growth Factor Rev. 17:157.
  5. Xu, P. and A.K. Hall (2006) Dev. Biol. 299:303.
  6. Shav-Tal, Y. and D. Zipori (2002) Stem Cells 20:493.
  7. Chen, Y.G. et al. (2006) Exp. Biol. Med. 231:534.
  8. Gray, A.M. and A.J. Mason (1990) Science 247:1328.
  9. Mason, A.J. et al. (1996) Mol. Endocrinol. 10:1055.
  10. Thompson, T.B. et al. (2004) Mol. Cell. Endocrinol. 225:9.
  11. Harrison, C.A. et al. (2005) Trends Endocrinol. Metab. 16:73.
  12. Onichtchouk, D. et al. (1999) Nature 401:480.
  13. Gray, P.C. et al. (2002) Mol. Cell. Endocrinol. 188:254.
  14. Kelber, J.A. et al. (2008) J. Biol. Chem. 283:4490.
  15. Phillips, D.J. et al. (1997) J. Endocrinol. 155:65.
  16. Schneyer, A. et al. (2003) Endocrinology 144:1671.
  17. Ghorbani-Dalini, S. et al. (2020) 3 Biotech. 10:215.
  18. Mennen, R. H. et al. (2022) Reprod Toxicol. 107:44.
  19. Mishra, S. et al. (2021) Stem Cells. 39:551.
  20. Tanigawa, S. et al. (2019) Stem Cell Reports 13:322.
  21. Cangkrama, M. et al. (2020) Trends Mol. Med. 26:1107.
  22. Ries, A. et al. (2020) Expert Opin. Ther. Targets. 24:985.
  23. Pinjusic, K. et al. (2022) J. Immunother. Cancer. 10:e004533.
  24. Dadheech, N. et al. (2020) Stem Cell Res. Ther. 11:327. 

Alternate Names

activin AB alpha polypeptide, Activin beta-A chain, erythroid differentiation factor, Erythroid differentiation protein, follicle-stimulating hormone-releasing protein, FSH-releasing protein, inhibin beta A chain, inhibin beta A subunit, Inhibin, beta-1

Entrez Gene IDs

3624 (Human); 16323 (Mouse); 29200 (Rat)

Gene Symbol

INHBA

UniProt

Additional Activin A Products

Product Documents for Recombinant Human/Mouse/Rat Activin A Protein

Certificate of Analysis

To download a Certificate of Analysis, please enter a lot number in the search box below.

Note: Certificate of Analysis not available for kit components.

Product Specific Notices for Recombinant Human/Mouse/Rat Activin A Protein

For research use only

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