[Basement membranes--structure, function, pathology].

Basement membranes are extracellular structures with a heterogeneous molecular composition. Several components have been identified and could be localized in specific morphological structures. Type IV collagen is found in the lamina densa, whereas laminin is the major component of the lamina lucida. Small amounts of heparan sulfate proteoglycan are also present in the lamina lucida. In some basement membranes, fibronectin and another glycoprotein, nidogen, could be identified. Epidermal basement membranes contain, in addition, the bullous pemphigoid antigen. Basement membranes are involved in several diseases and play an important part in tumor progression. Antibodies against distinct components of basement membranes have been shown to be useful as diagnostic tools in bullous disorders (e.g., epidermolysis bullosa) and for identifying the extracellular matrix of skin tumors (e.g., neurofibroma, cylindroma, granular cell myoblastoma).