A cysteine proteinase inhibitor (cystatin) from chestnut (Castanea sativa) seeds, designated CsC, has been previously characterized. Its antifungal, acaricide and inhibitory activities have allowed to involve CsC in defence mechanisms. The CsC transcription levels decreased during seed maturation and increased throughout germination, an opposite behavior to that shown by most phytocystatins. No inhibition of endogenous proteinase activity by purified CsC was found during the seed maturation or germination processes. CsC message accumulation was induced in chestnut leaves after fungal infection, as well as by wounding and jasmonic acid treatment. Induction in roots was also observed by the last two treatments. Furthermore, CsC transcript levels strongly raised, both in roots and leaves, when chestnut plantlets were subjected to cold- and saline-shocks, and also in roots by heat stress. All together, these data suggest that chestnut cystatin is not only involved in defence responses to pests and pathogen invasion, but also in those related to abiotic stress.