Integrins are a large family of heterodimeric transmembrane receptors that attach cells to extracellular matrix proteins of the basement membrane. They are bidirectional signaling molecules composed of noncovalently associated α and β subunits. They can form over 24 pairs in mammalian cells creating a wide range of ligand specificity for binding to different components of the extracellular matrix. Integrin expression changes depending on the type of cell, its developmental stage, or the pathological status. There is also an age-associated change in integrin expression which may, at least in part, be responsible for the high prevalence of age-associated disorders. The focus of this chapter is to discuss (1) general structure and function of integrins, (2) expression of integrins in the heart, (3) change in the expression of integrins in the heart during aging, (4) their role in regulation of the remodeling process of the heart, and (5) their therapeutic potential for treatment of heart failure.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ETSU/oai:dc.etsu.edu:etsu-works-17173 |
| Date | 01 January 2014 |
| Creators | Daniel, Laura L., Joyner, William L., Singh, Mahipal, Singh, Krishna |
| Publisher | Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University |
| Source Sets | East Tennessee State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Source | ETSU Faculty Works |
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