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HETEROGENEITY, POLYDISPERSITY, AND PHYSIOLOGIC ROLE OF CORNEAL PROTEOGLYCANS
Author(s) -
AXELSSON INGE
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
acta ophthalmologica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.534
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1755-3768
pISSN - 1755-375X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1755-3768.1984.tb06754.x
Subject(s) - keratan sulfate , chemistry , chondroitin sulfate , cartilage , proteoglycan , chondroitin , stroma , glycosaminoglycan , cornea , biochemistry , extracellular matrix , chromatography , anatomy , biology , ophthalmology , medicine , immunohistochemistry , immunology
Gel chromatography, affinity chromatography, ultracentrifugation, enzymic fragmentation, and analysis of amino acids, hexosamines and neutral sugars were used to characterize a heterogeneous fraction of proteoglycans from bovine corneal stroma. The results indicate that the fraction largely consists of a mixture of the 2 main types of corneal proteoglycans described earlier, namely keratan sulfate proteoglycans and chondroitin sulfate‐rich proteoglycans with covalently bound oligosaccharides. Models for the structure of proteoglycans are suggested, an it is concluded that the molecular size of corneal proteoglycans makes them appropriate as ‘spacers’ between the collagen fibrils, a property important for corneal transparency. Cornea is softer than cartilage because corneal proteoglycans are less underhydrated than cartilage proteoglycans.