Biolaminin 221 supports the growth, survival, and differentiation of a wide range of tissue-specific cell types, including cardiac cells and skeletal muscle cells.
A biologically relevant culture environment
Laminin 221 is important for muscle development and function and is together with laminin 211 one of the main laminin isoforms present in adult muscle tissue, including varying amounts of laminin 521 and laminin 421 depending on the tissue.
Mutations of the LAMA2 gene are the most common cause of congenital muscular dystrophy that frequently leads to death in early childhood (Domogatskaya, 2012). For a review of α2-laminin in skeletal muscle function, see Holmberg and Durbeej, 2012.
Laminin 211 as well as laminin 221, are very important for cardiomyocytes and heart muscle development. In the developing heart both laminin 211 and laminin 221 are expressed in the extracellular matrix of cardiomyocytes as well as in the basement membrane zones of the endo- and pericardium and the capillaries (Roediger, 2010).
Laminins containing the α2-chain (such as laminin 221) are expressed in the ventricular zone ECM in the developing mouse central nervous system. Since laminins are known to contribute to the stem cell niche in the brain, this suggests that laminin 221 could play an important functional role in the regulation of neural stem cells and progenitor cells (Haubst, 2006; Kazanis, 2010; Lathia, 2007; Mercier, 2002).
