title: Basement membrane (type IV) collagen.
abstract: The collagen IV molecule is 400 nm long and consists of two alpha 1 (IV) and one alpha 2 (IV) chains. Their genes COL4A1 and COL4A2 form a transcription unit in which they are arranged head-to-head and connected by a short common promoter region. Recently, four additional genes have been discovered. They are similarly arranged in the pairs COL4A3-A4 and COL4A5-A6 and code for additional collagen IV isoforms. in the macromolecular network of collagen IV, which provides the scaffold for basement membranes, the molecules are attached and cross-linked via their like end-regions and they interact laterally with their triple-helical domains in a not yet fully understood manner. Collagen IV is involved in interactions with cells and possesses two specific recognition sites for the integrins alpha 1 beta 1 and alpha 2 beta 1.
authors.affiliation: Max-Planck-Institut für Biochemie, Martinsried, Germany.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kühn
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001485:Basement Membrane / Q000737:chemistry*; D002448:Cell Adhesion; D003094:Collagen / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D005796:Genes; D006801:Humans; D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D011487:Protein Conformation
chemical_list: D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D003094:Collagen