Abstract
The outer mesoglea (extracellular matrix; ECM) of hydrozoan jellyfish was found to contain a species-specific meshwork of striated fibers of different diameters. In the mesoglea, molecules were identified which exhibit several features of well known vertebrate ECM: a laminin-like molecule which appears cross-shaped on electronmicrographs, a fibronectin-like molecule (both detectable by their immunoreactivity at the exumbrella side) and a species-specific collagen consisting of 3 different α-chains of which at least 2 can be decorated with con A. The α-chains are linked by disulfide bridges. Acetic acid extraction of the mesoglea and subsequent salt precipitation yields fibrils which appear banded in the electron microscope and support species-specific adhesion and spreading of isolated tissue. These precipitated fibrils are mainly composed of the disulfide-linked collagen.
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Schmid, V., Bally, A., Beck, K. et al. The extracellular matrix (mesoglea) of hydrozoan jellyfish and its ability to support cell adhesion and spreading. Hydrobiologia 216, 3–10 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00026436
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00026436