QSOX2 / Sulfhydryl oxidase 2 · IHC design guide

Design Immunohistochemistry for QSOX2

Plan chromogenic QSOX2 IHC in paraffin sections around the granular cytoplasmic tissue pattern (HPA tissue IHC). Use glandular cells as positive controls (HPA tissue IHC), and interpret membrane staining in light of QSOX2’s membrane and secreted annotations (UniProt).

Evidence assembled Oct 2026 · For research use; verify linked source records and product datasheet before use
Immunohistochemistry protocol sheet for QSOX2 (IHC for QSOX2): expected localisation Granular cytoplasm in tissue sections (HPA tissue IHC), antibody A10205-1, validated IHC image, and IHC protocol steps
Printable QSOX2 IHC protocol sheet — expected localisation Granular cytoplasm in tissue sections (HPA tissue IHC), antibody A10205-1, controls and protocol steps. Open the full QSOX2 IHC guide →

QSOX2 Immunohistochemistry Experimental Design Guide

Expected localisation, validated protocols, controls and antibodies — the at-a-glance facts below, then the full design guide.

Must know before staining
Expected localisation Granular cytoplasm in tissue sections (HPA tissue IHC)
Staining pattern Granular cytoplasmic staining in glandular cells (HPA tissue IHC)
Antigen retrieval EDTA pH 8.0 HIER, heat-mediated (datasheet A10205-1)
Positive control ⓘ Adrenal gland+4 more · see all
Negative control ⓘ Adipose tissue+3 more · see all
Important caveats
Reasons your staining may differ from the expected pattern.
Fixation Keep fixation consistent across sections. (standard IHC practice; not target-specific)
Caveat Tissue staining has only medium agreement with RNA (HPA tissue IHC)
Regulation Expression varies by tissue (UniProt)
Isoform / epitope No isoforms; signal peptide cleaved; map membrane epitope (UniProt)
Section 1

Recommended QSOX2 IHC & IF Protocols

Compare the catalog antibody’s IHC-P protocol (datasheet A10205-1) with published QSOX2 IHC methods in the four articles below (PMC5492681; PMC8631333; PMC8326667; PMC13168330).

Recommended immunohistochemistry (IHC-P) protocol parameters
SampleParaffin-embedded human breast cancer tissue; fixative not specified (datasheet A10205-1)
FixationImage fixative and duration unreported (datasheet A10205-1); verify before use.
Sectioning4–5 µm sections on charged slides (standard)
DeparaffinisationXylene, graded ethanol series to water (standard)
Antigen retrievalHeat retrieval: EDTA pH 8.0 (datasheet A10205-1); 20 min, 95–100 °C (standard)
Peroxidase block3% H2O2, 10 min, room temperature (standard)
Blocking10% goat serum (datasheet A10205-1)
Primary antibodyRabbit anti-QSOX2, 2-5 μg/ml (datasheet A10205-1)
Primary incubationOvernight at 4 °C (datasheet A10205-1)
DetectionStreptavidin-biotin complex (SABC), DAB chromogen (datasheet A10205-1)
CounterstainHematoxylin, blue, dehydrate and mount (standard)
Expected resultQSOX2-positive staining in glandular cells of adrenal gland (HPA tissue IHC: High). HPA tissue profile: Cytoplasmic expression with a granular pattern. No signal in the no-primary control.
💡Decision noteStart with heat-mediated EDTA pH 8.0 retrieval for the catalog antibody (datasheet A10205-1). The porcine protocol used citrate pH 6.0 (PMC5492681).
Section 2

What Is the Expected QSOX2 Staining Pattern?

In paraffin-section IHC, expect granular cytoplasmic staining in selected glandular, respiratory epithelial, hematopoietic and neural cell populations (HPA: tissue IHC). UniProt also annotates QSOX2 as secreted and membrane associated, with a transmembrane segment at 662–682; that topology does not establish a distinct membrane pattern on an IHC slide (UniProt Q6ZRP7 topology). Interpret tissue staining cautiously: HPA rates its IHC profile Uncertain, with medium agreement between staining and RNA data (HPA: tissue IHC reliability).

What am I looking at on my slide?
Granular cytoplasmic signal in colon or endometrial glandular cells, or bronchial respiratory epithelial cells (HPA: High in each listed cell population).This matches the reported IHC compartment and a high-staining cell population (HPA: tissue IHC profile). Score the relevant cells and their intensity, then check tissue architecture and controls; the overall IHC profile remains Uncertain (HPA: reliability; general IHC practice).
Predominantly crisp nuclear, diffuse extracellular, or exclusively plasma-membrane staining replaces the granular cytoplasmic pattern (HPA: tissue IHC profile).Treat the compartment mismatch as suspect in paraffin IHC and assess background and controls (HPA: tissue IHC profile; general IHC practice). UniProt lists membrane and secreted locations, but those annotations alone cannot validate this slide pattern (UniProt Q6ZRP7 subcellular location).
Strong staining appears in adipocytes or cardiomyocytes, while the expected glandular or epithelial cells are unstained (HPA: Not detected in those cells; High in selected glandular and respiratory epithelial cells).Investigate nonspecific antibody binding or endogenous chromogen activity before calling it QSOX2 (general IHC practice). HPA cell-level observations are comparators, not an absolute exclusion of biological expression (HPA: Uncertain IHC reliability).
Brown haze covers stroma, blank regions and many cell types without a discernible granular cytoplasmic pattern (HPA: tissue IHC profile).Interpret this as background until a clean cell-level pattern emerges (general IHC practice). Review blocking, washes, primary concentration and chromogen exposure, and compare a no-primary control; none of these checks proves QSOX2 specificity alone (general IHC practice).
No signal is seen in an adequately represented colon glandular or bronchial respiratory epithelial population (HPA: High in those populations).Check section quality, retrieval, antibody preparation and detection controls before calling the specimen negative (general IHC practice). Even a reported high-staining population is a reference rather than a guaranteed result for every specimen (HPA: Uncertain IHC reliability).
💡Expected QSOX2 appearanceA convincing positive is granular cytoplasmic staining in a reported high-staining cell population, such as colon glandular cells or bronchial respiratory epithelium; widespread featureless brown signal is suspect background (HPA: tissue IHC profile and High cell populations; general IHC practice).
How each factor affects the staining
Tissue and cell selection: HPA reports High staining in colon glandular cells and bronchial respiratory epithelial cells, but Not detected in adipocytes and cardiomyocytes (HPA: tissue IHC).Use the named cell populations as slide-level comparators, including cells of the correct identity and sufficient section area (HPA: tissue IHC; general IHC practice). HPA's Uncertain reliability limits how strongly one discordant specimen can be interpreted (HPA: reliability).
Antibody evidence: HPA012716 is IHC Uncertain; HPA017280 has no IHC status in the supplied record (HPA: antibody validation).Do not describe this IHC pattern as independently antibody-confirmed or IHC Enhanced (HPA: antibody validation). Judge a new stain using cell identity, compartment, controls and replicate sections together (general IHC practice).
Topology and processing: QSOX2 has a signal peptide at 1–21 and one transmembrane segment at 662–682 (UniProt Q6ZRP7 topology and processing).These features inform interpretation of secreted and membrane-associated forms but do not predict which epitope an unspecified antibody detects or establish extracellular IHC staining (UniProt Q6ZRP7 subcellular location; general IHC practice).
IF/ICC Q: Should its images define the paraffin IHC compartment? HPA reports supported Golgi localization, with additional nucleoplasmic localization (HPA: subcellular ICC-IF).A: Use that as context only. ICC-IF has different specimen preparation, and HPA rates ICC Enhanced for both listed antibodies while the supplied IHC status is Uncertain or absent (HPA: subcellular ICC-IF and antibody validation; general IHC practice).
Why is my staining missing, weak or wrong?
SituationLikely causeNext action
A reported high-staining glandular or respiratory epithelial population has no visible chromogen (HPA: High in colon glandular and bronchial respiratory epithelial cells).The target may be missed because a general IHC step or detection reagent failed; a single blank slide cannot distinguish that from a biological negative (general IHC practice).Check tissue preservation, retrieval conditions, primary handling and detection with appropriate run controls; repeat with a supported positive cell population (general IHC practice; HPA: High cell populations).
Granular cytoplasmic staining is obscured by uniform brown haze (HPA: tissue IHC profile).Excess primary reagent, inadequate blocking or washing, or excessive chromogen development can raise nonspecific background (general IHC practice).Compare a no-primary control, optimize primary concentration and washes, and shorten development as needed; retain a counterstain that allows cell identification (general IHC practice).
The chromogen appears mainly nuclear or extracellular in paraffin sections (HPA: granular cytoplasmic IHC profile).A compartment mismatch may reflect background, tissue artefact or an unvalidated staining pattern; UniProt membrane and secreted annotations do not resolve it (general IHC practice; UniProt Q6ZRP7 subcellular location).Recheck morphology and controls, then repeat using an IHC-validated antibody and the reported positive cell populations before assigning QSOX2 localization (general IHC practice; HPA: tissue IHC).
Strong signal occurs in adipocytes or cardiomyocytes (HPA: Not detected in these cell populations).Nonspecific binding or endogenous detection activity is possible; HPA's Uncertain IHC reliability also limits a categorical biological conclusion (general IHC practice; HPA: reliability).Assess no-primary and detection controls, inspect which cells contain the deposit, and compare a reported high-staining population on the same run (general IHC practice; HPA: tissue IHC).
Bone marrow shows widespread chromogen, making individual hematopoietic cells difficult to score (HPA: High in hematopoietic cells).Endogenous peroxidase or excessive detection background can complicate chromogenic IHC interpretation (general IHC practice).Check a no-primary control and the effectiveness of the peroxidase-blocking step; score only interpretable cells against the reported hematopoietic pattern (general IHC practice; HPA: tissue IHC).
An ICC-IF Golgi pattern is clearer than the paraffin IHC result (HPA: supported Golgi localization in ICC-IF; Uncertain tissue IHC reliability).The assays have different preparation and validation evidence; HPA's ICC Enhanced status does not transfer to IHC (general IHC practice; HPA: antibody validation).Interpret each assay against its own HPA pattern and controls; for this paraffin IHC guide, decide from cell-level granular cytoplasmic staining and IHC controls (HPA: tissue IHC profile; general IHC practice).

Sample controls for QSOX2 IHC & IF

🧪Run bone marrow first: hematopoietic cells should stain (HPA: High in bone marrow hematopoietic cells). Run adipose tissue as the negative tissue (HPA: Not detected in adipocytes); within the bone marrow slide, morphologically distinct cells outside the annotated hematopoietic population can serve as internal negatives only if they remain at background, since HPA does not designate them QSOX2-negative.
Positive control tissue: Adrenal gland (Glandular cells, HPA High)
Negative control tissue: Adipose tissue (HPA Not detected)
ICC-IF cell lines (HPA subcellular resource): HPA ICC-IF images show QSOX2 in A-431, U-251MG, U2OS, HaCaT, HeLa, with annotated localisation: Golgi apparatus (supported) (HPA subcellular).
Technical controls: Include no-primary (secondary-only), a concentration-matched rabbit IgG isotype control for the rabbit catalog antibody, and QSOX2-knockout tissue as a biological negative if available (hero caption: rabbit primary; standard IHC practice). Block endogenous peroxidase in bone marrow before chromogenic detection, and assess endogenous biotin if using the caption’s biotin–SABC detection system (HPA: bone marrow hematopoietic cells; hero caption: biotinylated secondary and SABC–DAB; standard IHC practice).
⚠️Feasibility: A target-specific fixation window and fixation effect are unreported; the selected A10205-1 paraffin-section caption does not state a fixative (hero caption: fixative not stated). That caption uses heat retrieval in EDTA at pH 8.0, but does not establish that retrieval is required for every specimen (hero caption: EDTA pH 8.0). Frozen sections have no supplied comparison, and ICC-IF has HPA images but no basis here to call it easier; bone marrow’s endogenous peroxidase can complicate chromogenic scoring (HPA: ICC-IF images; HPA: bone marrow hematopoietic cells; standard IHC practice).

HPA tissue IHC evidence for QSOX2

Comprehensive Human Protein Atlas IHC scoring per tissue (reliability: Uncertain — Medium consistency between antibody staining and RNA expression data.). Rows are taken directly from the HPA tissue chart — click any row's HPA link to view the source.

Positive expression · recommended positive controls

TissueCell typeLevelEvidenceSource
Adrenal gland Glandular cells High Protein (IHC) HPA →
Appendix Glandular cells High Protein (IHC) HPA →
Bone marrow Hematopoietic cells High Protein (IHC) HPA →
Bronchus Respiratory epithelial cells High Protein (IHC) HPA →
Caudate Glial cells High Protein (IHC) HPA →

Undetected expression · recommended negative controls

TissueCell typeLevelEvidenceSource
Adipose tissue Adipocytes Not detected Protein (IHC) HPA →
Heart muscle Cardiomyocytes Not detected Protein (IHC) HPA →
Liver Cholangiocytes Not detected Protein (IHC) HPA →
Skeletal muscle Myocytes Not detected Protein (IHC) HPA →
Section 3

Advanced QSOX2 IHC Tips

Troubleshoot QSOX2 staining in paraffin sections by checking retrieval, tissue handling, compartment patterns and controls before interpreting signal intensity.

Which retrieval condition should I start with for QSOX2 IHC?
Start with heat-mediated retrieval in EDTA at pH 8.0 for paraffin sections (datasheet A10205-1). The catalog antibody stained a paraffin section of human breast cancer after that retrieval, followed by 2 μg/ml primary antibody overnight at 4°C (datasheet A10205-1). If staining is weak, vary heating time on adjacent sections while keeping section thickness, antibody concentration and DAB development constant (standard IHC practice). Compare signal in the expected cells with background and tissue integrity, because excessive heating can damage morphology and make a stronger brown signal misleading (standard IHC practice).
Could fixation explain weak QSOX2 staining in paraffin sections?
QSOX2-specific fixation sensitivity is unknown: the catalog image describes a paraffin section but does not state its fixative (datasheet A10205-1). Record the actual fixative and fixation duration for each specimen, then compare matched sections processed with the same EDTA pH 8.0 retrieval and 2 μg/ml antibody conditions (datasheet A10205-1; standard IHC practice). Assess whether weak staining tracks with damaged morphology, uneven processing or a particular fixation batch before changing detection chemistry (standard IHC practice). Do not assign a QSOX2-specific fixation effect from the reported tissue staining pattern or protein topology; neither measures fixation sensitivity (HPA tissue IHC; UniProt Q6ZRP7 topology).
How should I evaluate nuclear, membrane and granular QSOX2 staining?
Evaluate the stained compartment within each identified cell population, rather than scoring every brown deposit as equivalent (standard IHC practice). Tissue IHC describes granular cytoplasmic staining, while cell imaging supports Golgi localisation with additional nucleoplasmic localisation (HPA tissue IHC; HPA subcellular). UniProt also annotates secreted, cell membrane and nuclear membrane localisation, a signal peptide at residues 1–21, and a transmembrane segment at 662–682 (UniProt Q6ZRP7). If an apparent compartment changes with retrieval or DAB development, compare adjacent sections and a no-primary control before interpreting it as a biological difference (standard IHC practice).
Could epitope location or protein processing alter my IHC pattern?
The record lists 0 annotated isoforms, so an isoform-specific staining explanation is not supported by this record (UniProt Q6ZRP7). QSOX2 has a signal peptide at residues 1–21, a transmembrane segment at 662–682, and glycosylation sites at 77, 178, 218 and 266 (UniProt Q6ZRP7). The catalog caption does not identify this antibody’s epitope, leaving its relationship to those features unresolved (datasheet A10205-1). If staining shifts between compartments, check the antibody’s documented immunogen or epitope before attributing the shift to processing, and compare serial sections under identical retrieval and detection conditions (standard IHC practice).
How can I check a QSOX2 IHC pattern by multiplex IF?
Treat multiplex IF as a separate assay to optimise; the catalog evidence here describes chromogenic staining of a paraffin section (datasheet A10205-1). Pair QSOX2 with a validated marker for the cell population being scored, such as glandular cells in colon, and inspect each channel separately before interpreting overlap (HPA tissue IHC; standard IF practice). Choose fluorophores and exposure settings after measuring unstained tissue autofluorescence, especially when assessing a granular cytoplasmic pattern (HPA tissue IHC; standard IF practice). Because this antibody’s epitope side is unspecified, select permeabilisation only after establishing whether the epitope is intracellular or accessible without it; QSOX2 spans residues 662–682 (datasheet A10205-1; UniProt Q6ZRP7; standard IF practice).
What should I change if QSOX2 IHC has diffuse brown background?
First compare a no-primary section with the stained section to separate detection-system background from primary-antibody staining (standard IHC practice). The catalog workflow used 10% goat serum, 2 μg/ml primary overnight at 4°C, biotinylated secondary for 30 minutes at 37°C, and DAB development (datasheet A10205-1). If both sections are brown, check peroxidase blocking, endogenous biotin effects in the avidin–biotin workflow, washing and DAB development time (datasheet A10205-1; standard IHC practice). If only the primary-treated section is diffuse, titrate antibody concentration and check whether granular cytoplasmic signal remains in appropriate cells (HPA tissue IHC; standard IHC practice).
How should I score QSOX2 across heterogeneous tissue sections? ⚠ ANSWER MARKED FOR VERIFICATION
Define the cell population and compartment before scoring, because tissue IHC reports a granular cytoplasmic pattern and different cell populations show different staining levels (HPA tissue IHC). For each region, record the percentage of positive cells and intensity categories 0–3; an H-score sums percentage × intensity across categories and ranges from 0–300 (standard IHC practice). Normalise positive-cell counts to the number of eligible cells, or stained-cell density to analysed tissue area in mm² (standard IHC practice). Keep retrieval, DAB development, imaging and scoring thresholds consistent, and report compartments separately when they differ (standard IHC practice).
When is a QSOX2-positive IHC result convincing rather than artefactual?
A convincing result places reproducible staining in identifiable cells with plausible compartment patterns and little signal in a no-primary control (HPA tissue IHC; HPA subcellular; standard IHC practice). Granular cytoplasmic staining is reported in tissue, while cell imaging supports Golgi and additional nucleoplasmic localisation; the tissue IHC reliability is rated uncertain (HPA tissue IHC; HPA subcellular). Compare a reported high-staining population, such as colon glandular cells, with a reported undetected population, such as adipocytes, without treating either as an absolute control (HPA tissue IHC). Discount signal confined to cut edges, necrotic areas or endogenous enzyme activity, and resolve unexpected compartments with matched sections and detection controls (standard IHC practice).
Boster reagents

Best QSOX2 / Sulfhydryl oxidase 2 IHC Antibodies

A10205-1 has IHC data from paraffin sections of human breast and liver cancer tissue and IF/ICC data from HeLa cells (A10205-1 IHC/IF image captions).

Real IHC data IHC analysis of QSOX2 using anti-QSOX2 antibody (A10205-1). QSOX2 was detected in a paraffin-embedded section of human breast cancer tissue. Heat mediated antigen retrieval was performed in EDTA buffer (pH 8.0, epitope retrieval solution). The tissue section was blocked with 10% goat serum. The tissue section was then incubated with 2 μg/ml rabbit anti-QSOX2 Antibody (A10205-1) overnight at 4°C. Biotinylated goat anti-rabbit IgG was used as secondary antibody and incubated for 30 minutes at 37°C. The tissue section was developed using Strepavidin-Biotin-Complex (SABC) (Catalog # SA1022) with DAB as the chromogen.
Anti-QSOX2 Antibody ®
Cat # A10205-1

A10205-1 is listed for human IHC and was shown on paraffin sections of human breast and liver cancer tissue (catalog: applications, reactivity; A10205-1 IHC image captions). A10205-1 is also listed for IF/ICC and was shown in HeLa cells (catalog: applications; A10205-1 IF image caption).

Which to pick: Choose A10205-1 for human paraffin-section IHC; its own captions document EDTA pH 8 retrieval and 2 μg/ml primary antibody, but do not report the fixative (A10205-1 IHC image captions). For IF/ICC, A10205-1 has a HeLa-cell IF example using 5 μg/ml primary antibody (A10205-1 IF image caption). No cross-species choice is supported: A10205-1 lists Human reactivity, a Rabbit host and no clone designation (catalog: reactivity, host, clone).

Each figure is that product's own IHC / IF validation image from its datasheet.

References

  1. UniProt Consortium. UniProt entry Q6ZRP7 (QSOX2_HUMAN, Sulfhydryl oxidase 2).
  2. Human Protein Atlas. QSOX2 tissue IHC expression (reliability: Uncertain).
  3. Human Protein Atlas. QSOX2 subcellular location (ICC-IF): Mainly localized to the Golgi apparatus. In addition localized to the nucleoplasm..
  4. Human Protein Atlas. QSOX2 antibody validation summary (2 antibodies).
  5. Identification, characterization and purification of porcine Quiescin Q6-Sulfydryl Oxidase 2 protein. BMC veterinary research 2017 — PMC5492681.
  6. Quiescin Sulfhydryl Oxidase 2 Overexpression Predicts Poor Prognosis and Tumor Progression in Patients With Colorectal Cancer: A Study Based on Data Mining and Clinical Verification. Frontiers in cell and developmental biology 2021 — PMC8631333.
  7. QSOX2 Is an E2F1 Target Gene and a Novel Serum Biomarker for Monitoring Tumor Growth and Predicting Survival in Advanced NSCLC. Frontiers in cell and developmental biology 2021 — PMC8326667.
  8. Non-enzymatic function of QSOX2 directly regulates the JUNB-ITGB4 axis and enhanced resistance to osimertinib in EGFR-mutation lung adenocarcinoma. Cell death discovery 2026 — PMC13168330.
  9. PubMed PMID:14633699 — UniProt-cited evidence.
  10. PubMed PMID:15164053 — UniProt-cited evidence.
  11. PubMed PMID:14702039 — UniProt-cited evidence.