Extracellular matrix glycoproteins

Elastic fibers form the network in skin and cardiovascular tissue (elastic arteries) that is associated with elastic recovery. Historically the recovery of skin and vessel wall on removal of mechanical loads at low strains has been attributed to elastic fibers. Elastic fibers are composed of a core of elastin surrounded by microfibrils 10 to 15 nm in diameter composed of a family of glycoproteins recently termed fibrillins. Fibrillins are a family of extracellular matrix glycoproteins (MW about 350,000) containing a large number of cysteine residues (cysteine residues form disulfide crosslinks). Several members of the family have been described. The common molecular features include N and C terminal ends with 47 tandemly repeated epi-... 

The evidence is increasing that glycosylation of integrins plays important modulatory roles in the function of these molecules. In other studies it appears that the glycosylation of at least one extracellular matrix glycoprotein, namely laminin, is important in cellular adhesion mediated by integrins. So far most information on the role of carbohydrates in integrin-mediated adhesive interactions has been obtained for the fibronectin receptors... 

Mitrovic, N., Dorries, U. and Schachner, M. (1994) Expression of the extracellular matrix glycoprotein tenascin in the somatosensory cortex of the mouse during postnatal development an immuncytochemical and in situ hybridization analysis. J. Neurocytol. 23 364-378. 

Garwood, J., Garcion, E., Dobbertin, A., Heck, N., Calco, V., Ffrench-Constant, C., Faissner, A., 2004. The extracellular matrix glycoprotein Tenascin-C is expressed by oligodendrocyte precursor cells and required for the regulation of maturation rate, survival and responsiveness to platelet-derived growth factor. Eur. J. Neurosci. 20, 2524-2540. 

Meiners, S. and Mercado, M. L. T. 2003. Fimctional peptide sequences derived from extracellular matrix glycoproteins and their receptors—Strategies to improve neuronal regeneration. Mol Neurobiol 27 177-95. 

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