extracellular matrix
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extracellular matrix
the aggregate of proteins secreted by cells.
Farlex Partner Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
extracellular matrix
Non-living material secreted by cells that fills spaces between the cells in a tissue, protecting them and helping to hold them together. The extracellular matrix may be semifluid or rigidly solid and hard as in bone. It is composed mainly of protein and includes collagens, elastin, reticulin, glycoproteins, proteoglycans, fibronectin, laminins and osteopontin.Collins Dictionary of Medicine © Robert M. Youngson 2004, 2005
extracellular matrix (ECM)
see MATRIX.Collins Dictionary of Biology, 3rd ed. © W. G. Hale, V. A. Saunders, J. P. Margham 2005