Many mammalian organs undergo branching morphogenesis to create highly arborized structures with maximized surface area for specialized organ function. Cooperative cell-cell and cell-matrix adhesions that sculpt the emerging tissue architecture are guided by dynamic basement membranes. Properties of the basement membrane are reciprocally controlled by the interacting epithelial and mesenchymal ...

The ultrastructure of the subplasmalemmal cytoplasm of the cell and the associated basement membrane as well as the area of the cell-basement membrane border were observed with high resolution electron microscopy after preparation of the tissues with cryofixation or glutaraldehyde fixation followed by freeze substitution. The subplasmalemmal cytoplasm of the smooth muscle cells of rat epididyma...

cate that Shh signalling controls Laminin gene expression, a critical step in the formation of the myotomal basement membrane, and that Laminin-111 has specific and essential role in myotomal basement membrane assembly. Together, our data reveal a novel role for Shh signalling in the control of basement membrane assembly and provide a framework for understanding the complex interactions between...

The nematode worm Caenorhabditis elegans has all the major basement membrane proteins found in vertebrates, usually with a smaller gene family encoding each component. With its powerful forward genetics, optical clarity, simple tissue organization, and the capability to functionally tag most basement membrane components with fluorescent proteins, C. elegans has facilitated novel insights into t...

Cell invasion through basement membrane is an essential part of normal development and physiology, and occurs during the pathological progression of human inflammatory diseases and cancer. F-actin-rich membrane protrusions, called invadopodia, have been hypothesized to be the "drill bits" of invasive cells, mediating invasion through the dense, highly cross-linked basement membrane matrix. Thou...

The majority of cancer is of surface/cyst epithelial origin. The ovarian surface epithelial cells are organized by a sheet of basement membrane composed mainly of collagen IV and laminin, and it is believed that the basement membrane greatly influences the physiological properties of ovarian surface epithelial cells. Previous studies in our laboratories indicated that loss of the basement membr...

PURPOSE To understand the underlying mechanisms responsible for the easy removal and sloughing of corneal epithelium in vitamin A deficiency. METHODS An animal model of vitamin A deficiency, the vitamin A-deficient rat (A-rat), transmission electron microscopy, computer-assisted morphometric analysis and indirect immunofluorescence were used to study the adhesion of rat corneal epithelium to ...

Basement membranes form an anatomic barrier that contains connective tissue. They are composed of type IV collagen, laminin and proteoglycans. Anti-basement membrane antibodies bind to the non-collagen site of the α3 chain of type IV collagen. A group of renal diseases, pulmonary diseases and perhaps others affecting different organs have long been associated with the presence of antibodies dir...

Cell invasion across basement membrane barriers is important in both normal development and cancer metastasis. In this issue of Developmental Cell, Naegeli et al. (2017) identify a mechanism for breaching basement membranes. Localized lysosome exocytosis fuels generation of large, invasive cellular protrusions that expand tiny basement membrane openings.

The majority of cancer is of surface/cyst epithelial origin. The ovarian surface epithelial cells are organized by a sheet of basement membrane composed mainly of collagen IV and laminin, and it is believed that the basement membrane greatly influences the physiological properties of ovarian surface epithelial cells. Previous studies in our laboratories indicated that loss of the basement membr...