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Description

Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) is a 36 kDa molecule that is highly conserved between species. PCNA was first identified as the antigen for a subpopulation of autoantibodies in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (Miyachi, 1978, Takasaki, 1984, Ogata, 1987). It has since been determined that PCNA serves as a co-factor for DNA polymerase delta in S-phase as well as during DNA synthesis associated with mechanisms involved in DNA damage repair (Tan, 1987, Bravo, 1987). The temporal specificity of PCNA expression makes it an ideal marker for cell proliferation. PCNA begins to accumulate during the G1 phase of the cell cycle, is most abundant during the S phase, and declines during the G2/M phase (Kurki, 1988). Since the half-life of PCNA exceeds 20 hours, it may be possible to detect the protein in non-cycling cells.