MCAM (P1H12) Mouse mAb #13475

Melanoma cell adhesion molecule (MCAM, MUC18, CD146) is an immunoglobulin superfamily member originally described as a cell surface adhesion protein and marker of the progression and metastasis of melanoma (1,2). Expression of MCAM protein is seen in vascular endothelial cells, activated T lymphocytes, smooth muscle, and bone marrow stromal cells. Research studies demonstrate increased MCAM expression in endothelial cells from angiogenesis-related disorders, including inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn’s disease, rheumatoid arthritis, tumors, and chronic renal failure (3). MCAM-expressing human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSC) in the hematopoietic microenvironment are responsible for maintaining the self-renewal of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC) through direct contact between hMSC and HSPC (2). Related studies suggest that activation of the Notch signaling pathway may also, in part, play a role in HSPC maintenance (4). Additional research indicates that MCAM may play a role in multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune inflammatory disease that affects central nervous system neurons. Endothelial MCAM within the blood-brain barrier act as adhesion receptors that permit lymphocytes to transmigrate across the barrier and produce the inflammatory lesions that characterize the disorder (5).