Kappa Light Chain

Antigen Background

Immunoglobulins are polypeptides and comprise five major classes; immunoglobulin G (IgG), IgA, IgM, IgD and IgE. Each immunoglobulin consists of two identical heavy (H) chains and two identical light (L) chains.These are also subdivided into sub classes eg IgG1. There are two classes of light chain; kappa and lambda. The ratio of kappa chains and lambda chains varies between Ig classes and sub classes, but is also species specific. In humans, approximately 60 percent of light chains are kappa. However, in any particular immunoglobulin molecule the light chain will be either kappa or lambda. B cells contain either kappa or lambda mRNA.

Disclaimer

Kappa Light Chain is recommended for the detection of specific antigens of interest in normal and neoplastic tissues, as an adjunct to conventional histopathology using non-immunologic histochemical stains.