A component of the extracellular matrix that is found in all basal laminae and has binding sites for cell-surface receptors, collagen, and heparan sulfate proteoglycans. ( Figure 22-19)

Laminins are the major non-collagenous component of the basal lamina, such as those on which cells of an epithelium sit.Haralson & Hassell, 1995. They are a family of glycoproteins that are an integral part of the structural scaffolding of basement membranes in almost every animal tissue. Laminins are secreted and incorporated into cell-associated extracellular matrices.