Procalcitonin is a precursor protein of the peptide hormones calcitonin and katacalcin. It is synthesized mainly by the C cells of the thyroid and certain endocrine cells in the lung, where it is processed and stored in secretory granules. Procalcitonin levels are elevated in patients with severe bacterial infections and sepsis, as result of induction of CALCA gene expression in all cell types by bacterial endotoxins or cytokines. Elevated procalcitonin levels have also been reported after fungal or protozoal infection, malaria, severe trauma, burns and thyroid cancer. Procalcitonin levels decline rapidly after acute infections, but remain high in patients with septic shock. Viral and autoimmune disorders produce much lower levels than observed with bacterial sepsis. Procalcitonin is a useful biomarker for the diagnosis of bacterial infection and sepsis, for effective monitoring of antibiotic therapy and for investigations into the cause of inflammation.

Randox recombinant human procalcitonin is suitable for use by researchers from academic and government research institutions, biotechnology, diagnostic and pharmaceutical companies, as well as hospitals and reference laboratories in a wide range of research and development applications. Potential applications include antibody production and characterisation, immunoassay development, and as a positive control or standard in immunochemical methods, including ELISA and Western blot.

Randox recombinant human procalcitonin comprises a 114 amino acid fragment (aa 3-116) corresponding to the unprocessed procalcitonin and is expressed in E. coli with an amino-terminal hexahistidine tag. This recombinant protein is manufactured by Randox at their state of the art ISO13485 facility in Northern Ireland.