Iba1 is a protein that exists in the cytoplasm, and it is highly evolutionarily conserved. It is also possibly identical to three other proteins, Iba-2, MRF-1 (microglia response factor) and daintain. However complete functional profiles of all three proteins and how they overlap is unknown. Iba1 is a 17-kDa EF hand protein that is specifically expressed in macrophages / microglia and is upregulated during the activation of these cells. Iba1 expression is up-regulated in microglia following nerve injury, central nervous system ischemia, and several other brain diseases. In recent years, the possibility of a role for Iba1 in cancer development has also been considered. Significantly higher levels of Iba1 expression were found in hepatocarcinoma cell lines and in tissue compared to healthy samples. It has also been shown that Iba1 expression can contribute to progression of cancer by inhibition of apoptosis in cells.