BD Transduction Laboratories™ Purified Mouse Anti-CD49c

Integrins are a family of dimeric proteins that mediate cell-to-cell and extracellular matrix adhesion.  They consist of a large α chain that is non-covalently associated with a smaller β chain which defines the integrin subfamilies.  VLA-3 (Very Late Antigen-3), a member of the integrin superfamily, exhibits elevated expression on B lymphocytes, but is also found on monocytes, platelets, and hematopoietic progenitor cells.  A heterodimer of α3 (CD49c) and β1 (CD29) subunits, VLA is a receptor for laminin, fibronectin, and collagen.  The α3 chain contains a large extracellular domain with three putative metal-binding sequences, a transmembrane domain, and a short cytoplasmic tail.  Differing requirements for divalent cations and the influence of RGD peptides results in multiple ligand-binding mechanisms for VLA-3.  Although its expression is restricted in normal tissues, VLA-3 is found on a variety of cultured tumor cells.  In addition, levels of VLA-3 have been shown to correlate with the degree of invasiveness of malignant melanoma cells.  Thus, VLA-3 mediates intercellular adhesion and cell migration in normal and, possibly, cancerous cell types.