Table 1.

Differences in cECM due to age and disease.

Condition	ECM composition	Structural properties	References
Adult (healthy)	High collagen I and laminin Uniquely contains collagen III and collagen V	Intertwined nanofibrils and thick microfibers Thick/mature basement membrane Complete laminin/collagen IV assembly in honeycomb-shape Discrete distribution of fibronectin	[12–14]
Fetal/neonatal	High fibronectin, periostin, collagen IV, collagen VI, fibrillin 1, perlecan Uniquely contains emulin-1, fibrillin 2	Loose meshwork of nanofibers and slender microfibers Thin/irregular basement membrane Fibrillar fibronectin	[13,14,23]
Post-MI	Increase in collagen overall Initial increase in collagen IV and periostin Decrease in collagen IX	Change in stiffness (possible decrease) Increased fiber alignment Decreased crosslinking	[22,31]