Extracellular matrix components involved in neuromuscular transmission and regeneration

The portion of a skeletal muscle fibre's basal lamina sheath that lies in the synaptic cleft at the neuromuscular junction contains a high concentration of certain molecules that distinguish it from non-junctional portions of the sheath. Among the molecules are acetylcholinesterase, which terminates the action of the transmitter, acetylcholine, on the postsynaptic membrane, and factors that direct differentiation at neuromuscular junctions regenerating after trauma. In this communication the evidence that acetylcholinesterase and synapse differentiation factors are associated with synaptic cleft basal lamina is reviewed and the results of current experiments aimed at characterizing these extracellular matrix molecules are described.