Collagen IV of basement membranes: I. Origin and diversification of COL4 genes enabling metazoan multicellularity, evolution, and adaptation

Abstract excerpt

Collagen IV (Col-IV) is a major component of basement membranes, a specialized form of extracellular matrix that enabled the assembly of multicellular epithelial tissues. In mammals, Col-IV assembles from a family of six α-chains (α1–α6), forming three supramolecular scaffolds: Col-IVα121, Col-IVα345, and Col-IVα121–α556. The α-chains are encoded by six genes (COL4A1–6) that occur in pairs in a head-to-head...

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