Mammalian vitreous humor contains networks of hyaluronan molecules: Electron microscopic analysis using the hyaluronan-binding region (G1) of aggrecan and link protein

Rheology of the vitreous gel: Effects of macromolecule organization on the viscoelastic properties

“…From the second element, we obtained the average elastic modulus of G 0 2 ¼ 1.1470.71 Pa, which is smaller than G 0 1 . Therefore, we believe that microfibril and hyaluronan networks always form viscoelastic solutions, further suggesting the presence of lateral aggregates of hyaluronan in the vitreous (Almond et al, 1998a, b;Brewton and Mayne, 1992;Bishop, 2000). In addition, such behavior indicates that hyaluronan chains do not form strong stable intermolecular associations (Almond et al, 1998a, b).…”

The Role of Hyaluronan in the Pulmonary Alveolus

“…Turner et al (1988) studied short segments of hyaluronan by viscometry, light scattering, and circular dichroism spectroscopy and found indications of concentration-dependent intermolecular association of short segments of approximately 5}7 kDa and evidence of intramolecular association (hairpin formation) by larger segments of more than 15}20 kDa. Self-aggregation of HA in the gel-like matrix of the vitreous humor has been shown by rotary shadowing-electron microscopy (Brewton & Mayne, 1992). By analogy one can reason that such structures also exist in the aqueous subphase of the alveolus.…”

Hyaluronan-dependent pericellular matrix☆

“…Link proteins stabilize the interaction between hyaluronic acid and proteoglycans [19][20][21] and have been shown to have a shortening effect on the length of hyaluronan that is similar to the proteoglycan [17]. Others have shown that adding an excess of link proteins can cause fragmentation or disruption of hyaluronan networks [22].…”