Huxley-Jones Julie, Pinney John W, Archer John, Robertson David L, Boot-Handford Raymond P
Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Matrix Research, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Int J Exp Pathol. 2009 Apr;90(2):95-100. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2613.2008.00637.x.
The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a complex substrate that is involved in and influences a spectrum of behaviours such as growth and differentiation and is the basis for the structure of tissues. Although a characteristic of all metazoans, the ECM has elaborated into a variety of tissues unique to vertebrates, such as bone, tendon and cartilage. Here we review recent advances in our understanding of the molecular evolution of the ECM. Furthermore, we demonstrate that ECM genes represent a pivotal family of proteins the evolution of which appears to have played an important role in the evolution of vertebrates.
细胞外基质（ECM）是一种复杂的底物，它参与并影响一系列行为，如生长和分化，是组织结构的基础。尽管ECM是所有后生动物的一个特征，但它已在脊椎动物特有的多种组织中得到了细化，如骨骼、肌腱和软骨。在这里，我们回顾了我们对ECM分子进化理解的最新进展。此外，我们证明ECM基因代表了一个关键的蛋白质家族，其进化似乎在脊椎动物的进化中发挥了重要作用。
