About Complement Factor I
This gene encodes a serine proteinase that is essential for regulating the complement cascade. The encoded preproprotein is cleaved to produce both heavy and light chains, which are linked by disulfide bonds to form a heterodimeric glycoprotein. This heterodimer can cleave and inactivate the complement components C4b and C3b, and it prevents the assembly of the C3 and C5 convertase enzymes. Defects in this gene cause complement factor I deficiency, an autosomal recessive disease associated with a susceptibility to pyogenic infections. Mutations in this gene have been associated with a predisposition to atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome, a disease characterized by acute renal failure, microangiopathic hemolytic anemia and thrombocytopenia. Primary glomerulonephritis with immune deposits and age-related macular degeneration are other conditions associated with mutations of this gene. [provided by RefSeq, Dec 2015]

About FITC
Fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) has an excitation peak at 495 nm and an emission peak at 519 nm. The name FITC is a misnomer in that the isothiocyanate is a reactive form of this dye. Once FITC is conjugated to an antibody, it is simply Fluorescein conjugated. FITC is one of the most widely used dyes for fluorescent applications, therefore most instruments come standard with a 488 nm laser and FITC filter set up. FITC is commonly conjugated to secondary antibodies and used in applications such as flow cytometry, immunocytochemistry, and immunohistochemistry. FITC is relatively dim, sensitive to photobleaching and it is susceptible to changes is pH. There are better performing alternatives to FITC, like Vio®Bright 515, Alexa Fluor™ 488, iFluor® 488, CF®488A and DY-488. FITC is a long-time generic dye with no sole manufacturer or trademark.