Open AccessPerlecan (basement membrane heparan sulfate proteoglycan) and its role in oral malignancies: An overview
Author(s) -
Mithilesh Mishra,
Veena V. Naik,
Alka D Kale,
Anil V Ankola,
Ganga S Pilli
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
indian journal of dental research/indian journal of dental research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.277
H-Index - 43
eISSN - 1998-3603
pISSN - 0970-9290
DOI - 10.4103/0970-9290.94678
Subject(s) - perlecan , basement membrane , mucoepidermoid carcinoma , heparan sulfate , extracellular matrix , proteoglycan , microbiology and biotechnology , lamina densa , adenoid cystic carcinoma , heparanase , biology , angiogenesis , pathology , stromal cell , cancer research , salivary gland , anatomy , medicine , biochemistry , glycosaminoglycan , carcinoma
Perlecan means pearl-like structures. Perlecan is a large proteoglycan (400-500 kDa) present in virtually all vascularized tissues with a distribution that is primarily confined to basement membranes including those of oral mucosa. It is a basement membrane-type heparan sulfate proteoglycan. Perlecan is synthesized by basal cells and fibroblasts adjacent to the basal lamina . Perlecan is also synthesized by vascular endothelial and smooth muscle cells present in the extracellular matrix. It has been demonstrated in recent years that perlecan is distributed in the stromal space of various pathophysiological conditions. The complex pleiotropy of perlecan suggests that this gene product is involved in several developmental processes, at both early and late stages of embryogenesis, as well as in cancer and diabetes. In the oral cavity, perlecan expression is reported to basal cells in normal mucosa and its expression increases in precancer and cancerous conditions. It is also expressed in various odontogenic tumors such as ameloblastoma, keratocyst odontogenic tumor, and also salivary gland tumors such as adenoid cystic carcinoma, mucoepidermoid carcinoma, etc.