Anti-Laminin 2 alpha/LAMA2 Antibody Picoband® Fluoro488 Conjugated

Laminin, alpha-2, also known as LAMA2, is a protein that in humans is encoded by the LAMA2 gene. This gene is mapped to 6q22.33. Laminin, an extracellular protein, is a major component of the basement membrane. It is though to mediate the attachment, migration, and organization of cells into tissues during embryonic development by interacting with other extracellular matrix components. It is composed of three subunits, alpha, beta, and gamma, which are bound to each other by disulfide bonds into a cross-shaped molecule. This gene encodes the alpha 2 chain, which constitutes one of the subunits of laminin 2 (merosin) and laminin 4 (s-merosin) . Mutations in this gene have been identified as the cause of congenital merosin-deficient muscular dystrophy. Two transcript variants encoding different proteins have been found for this gene.

A synthetic peptide corresponding to a sequence at the N-terminus of human Laminin 2 alpha, identical to the related mouse sequence, and different from the related rat sequence by one amino acid.

Placenta, striated muscle, peripheral nerve, cardiac muscle, pancreas, lung, spleen, kidney, adrenal gland, skin, testis, meninges, choroid plexus, and some other regions of the brain; not in liver, thymus and bone.

Binding to cells via a high affinity receptor, laminin is thought to mediate the attachment, migration and organization of cells into tissues during embryonic development by interacting with other extracellular matrix components.

1. Coral-Vazquez, R. M., Rosas-Vargas, H., Meza-Espinosa, P., Mendoza, I., Huicochea, J. C., Ramon, G., Salamanca, F. Severe congenital muscular dystrophy in a Mexican family with a new nonsense mutation (R2578X) in the laminin alpha-2 gene. J. Hum. Genet. 48: 91-95, 2003. 2. Millay, D. P., Sargent, M. A., Osinska, H., Baines, C. P., Barton, E. R., Vuagniaux, G., Sweeney, H. L., Robbins, J., Molkentin, J. D. Genetic and pharmacologic inhibition of mitochondrial-dependent necrosis attenuates muscular dystrophy. Nature Med. 14: 442-447, 2008.