Basement membranes as the regulatory system between epithelial cell connections and connective tissue

Basement membranes develop by an interaction between epithelium and underlying mesenchymal. Basement membranes are to an great extend involved in the metabolic induced informational exchange between these 2 compartments. Informational selectivity is not only given with the construction of basement membranes. By redox systems like ascorbic acid/dehydroascorbic acid, preferentially located in basement membranes, the capability exists of scavenging free oxygen radicals on the border line between epithelia and connective tissue. This seems to be a very important factor in coupling the biorhythms between epithelia and connective tissue.