title: Heparan sulfates in the lung: structure, diversity, and role in pulmonary emphysema.
abstract: There is an emerging interest in the extracellular matrix (ECM) of the lung, especially in the role it plays in development and disease. There is a rapid change from the classical view of the ECM as a supporting structure towards a view of the ECM as a regulatory entity with profound effects on proliferation, migration, and differentiation of pulmonary cells. In the ECM, a variety of molecules is present in a highly organized pattern. Next to the abundant fiber-forming molecules such as collagens and elastin, a large number of less abundant molecules are part of the ECM, including proteoglycans. In this review, we will focus on one class of proteoglycans, the heparan sulfate proteoglycans. We will particularly address the structure, biosynthesis, and function of their saccharide moiety, the heparan sulfates, including their role in development and (patho)physiology.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen Centre for Molecular Life Sciences, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Nicole C
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Smits
authors.forename: Nicholas W
authors.initials: NW
authors.lastname: Shworak
authors.forename: P N Richard
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Dekhuijzen
authors.forename: Toin H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: van Kuppevelt
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006497:Heparan Sulfate / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D011650:Pulmonary Alveoli / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D011656:Pulmonary Emphysema / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D020545:Respiratory Mucosa / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D006497:Heparan Sulfate