Immunochemical analysis of laminin during postnatal development of the rat submandibular gland.

Anti-laminin serum was used to investigate distribution patterns and chain composition of laminin during postnatal development of rat submandibular gland. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that in glands of newborn rats laminin was not uniformly present around growing acini. Staining was frequently weak or absent in clefts formed between adjacent cells. This irregular staining pattern decreased progressively over the subsequent periods, and in 30-day-old animals immunoreactivity was observed only at the periphery of glands. Immunoblot analysis showed that laminin was composed of bands corresponding to the alpha 1, beta 1 and gamma 1 polypeptides. The correlation between the pattern of laminin expression and gland maturation suggests a role of laminin in the functional maturation of acinar cells.