Structure, function and regulation of versican: the most abundant type of proteoglycan in the extracellular matrix

One of the main members of the large aggregating proteoglycans (PGs) family is versican which is able to bind to hyaluronate. Versican is a chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan and is a key ingredient of the extracellular matrix.  Due to its widespread expression in the body, versican is involved in cell adhesion, proliferation and migration. Induced expression of versican is often observed in tissues such as breast, brain, ovary, gastrointestinal tract, prostate, and melanoma. In addition, versican has important role in development. For example, versican conducts the embryonic cell migration which is essential in the formation of the heart and outlining the path for neural crest cell migration. Several studies in the past decade up to now have shown that versican produced by mononuclear cells has an important role in wound healing and blood vessel formation and suggested that it promotes tumorigenesis and angiogenesis. In this mini-review, we summarise and discuss the role of versican in healthy and pathological tissues and suggest the possible function of transcription factors and signalling pathway in regulation of versican.