Brevican: a major proteoglycan in adult brain.

A diverse set of proteoglycans is expressed in the developing and adult brain. This is in stark contrast to the fact that most extracellular matrix components, including fibronectin, laminin, and collagens, are not expressed in adult brain parenchyma. This suggests that proteoglycans may play a major functional role in cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions in the brain. Brevican is a member of the aggrecan/versican family of proteoglycans, containing a hyaluronic acid-binding domain in its N-terminus and a lectin-like domain in its C-terminus. Brevican has the smallest core protein among this family and is one of the most abundant chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans in the adult brain. Expression of brevican is highly specific in the brain and increases as the brain develops. These observations suggest that brevican may play a role in maintaining the extracellular environment of mature brain as a major constituent of the adult brain extracellular matrix.