Latexin is a structurally similar protein to TIG1. Latexin is the only mammalian carboxypeptidase inhibitor, although TIG1's proteolytic activity remains unexplored. Using a selective subtractive differential gene display, Jing and colleagues discovered that TIG1 expression was absent from malignant prostate carcinoma cell lines but present in benign tumor lines.
Latexin is structurally comparable to TIG1. Latexin serves as the only carboxypeptidase inhibitor in mammals, whereas the proteolytic functions of TIG1 remain uninvestigated. Researchers utilized a specific method to discover that TIG1 was not present in cancerous prostate cells but was found in non-cancerous tumor cells.