STRUCTURE AND BIOLOGICAL-ACTIVITY OF THE EXTRACELLULAR-MATRIX

The extracellular matrix is formed by complex and intricate networks w ithin which molecules are precisely organized, These molecular network s determine the specific histoarchitecture of tissues and provide cell s with information and a scaffold, Most of the structural extracellula r matrix molecules - collagens, noncollagenous glycoproteins, and prot eoglycans - are chimeric and share common domains, Studies of the inte ractions between extracellular matrix molecules and mapping of the int eraction sites to defined structural modules have led to the concept t hat the function of the extracellular matrix relies largely in the pol ymers that they form, Furthermore, determination of the tertiary struc ture of protein motifs involved either in the assembly of the various molecules into polymers or in cell-extracellular matrix interactions h as recently opened the field of structural biology of the extracellula r matrix.