Intended for postgraduate and professional researchers in biochemistry, biomedical sciences and cell biology, this text offers a guide to the extracellular matrix and adhesion proteins.

A compendium of the proteins found in the extracellular matrix and those known to be involved in cell-cell contact and adhesion. Organized alphabetically, it summarizes the essential features of these proteins, giving key references and drawing together information from wide-ranging sources.

Intended for postgraduate and professional researchers in biochemistry, biomedical sciences and cell biology, this text offers a guide to the extracellular matrix and adhesion proteins.

Knowledge of the extracellular matrix (ECM) is essential to understand cellular differentiation, tissue development, and tissue remodeling. This volume of the series “Biology of Extracellular Matrix” provides a timely overview of the structure, regulation, and function of the major macromolecules that make up the extracellular matrix. It covers topics such as collagen types and assembly of collagen-containing suprastructures, basement membrane, fibronectin and other cell-adhesive glycoproteins, proteoglycans, microfibrils, elastin, fibulins and matricellular proteins, such as thrombospondin. It also explores the concept that ECM components together with their cell surface receptors can be viewed as intricate nano-devices that allow cells to physically organize their 3-D-environment. Further, the role of the ECM in human disease and pathogenesis is discussed as well as the use of model organisms in elucidating ECM function.

The biology of the 1980s and 1990s may well come to be remembered as the era of discovery of new proteins. Recent advances in molecular biology, genetics, and protein purification have conspired to accelerate the rate at which cellular proteins and their amino acid sequences are being identified. Now that the floodgate of discovery has been opened wide, the amount of new information on cellular proteins is exceeding most scientists' capacity for assimilation. At the same time, however, it has become imperative for research workers to expand their knowledge base because interactions between previously unconnected sets of proteins are being uncovered at such a rapid pace. These considerations have led Thomas E. Kreis and Ronald D. Vale to compile both the Guidebook to Cytoskeletal and Motor Proteins and the Guidebook to the Extracellular Matrix and Adhesion Proteins. Both books are distinguished by numerous outstanding features, including: concise compendiums of molecular information, consolidation of information from widely scattered sources, key references, clearly designed pages with many high-quality illustrations, and the first compilations of concise descriptions of the structure, function, and distribution of the proteins covered. Guidebook to Cytoskeletal and Motor Proteins covers actin and actin binding proteins, tubulin and associated proteins, the intermediate filaments, motor proteins, cytoskeletal anchor proteins, organelle membrane associated structural proteins, and other proteins. Introductory chapters provide overviews for each class of protein. Biological and structural attributes of about 200 individual proteins, or groups of closely related proteins, are concisely described by investigators who participated in their discovery or characterization. In addition, information regarding purification methods, assays of activity, and available reagents, together with a list key review and research articles, are included. Over 240 authors contributed to the entries. Guidebook to the Extracellular Matrix and Adhesion Proteins provides a concise compendium of the proteins found in the extracellular matrix and those known to be involved in cell-cell contact and adhesion. Organized alphabetically, it summarizes the key characteristics of these proteins and includes the same features--such as introductory chapters and contributions from the field's leading experts--that make its companion volume so essential. Designed to explain the each protein in an accessible manner, the book is also referenced for in-depth reading and provides excellent overviews.

Success or failure of biomaterials, whether tissue engineered constructs, joint and dental implants, vascular grafts, or heart valves, depends on molecular-level events that determine subsequent responses of cells and tissues. This book presents the latest developments and state-of-the-art knowledge regarding protein, cell, and tissue interactions with both conventional and nanophase materials. Insight into these biomaterial surface interactions will play a critical role in further developments in fields such as tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, and biocompatibility of implanted materials and devices. With chapters written by leaders in their respective fields, this compendium will be the authoritative source of information for scientists, engineers, and medical researchers seeking not only to understand but also to control tissue-biomaterial interactions.

Cancer was thought to originate from alterations in intercellular signaling that resulted in the transformation of cells, their uncontrolled proliferation and metastasis. There is now an increasing body of evidence demonstrating that the surrounding matrix and cell-matrix interactions are also major players in this process. Cells adhere and receive signals from various extracellular matrices via transmembrane receptors, the best known of which are the heterodimeric glycoproteins, integrins.