背景资料：Integrins are important extracellular matrix (ECM) receptor proteins located on cell surfaces. They are hetrodimers composed of an alpha and a beta transmembrane glycoprotein subunit. Around 22 different integrins (different alpha/ beta subunit combinations) are found in nature. Integrins are generally present in high concentrations at the cell surface, but, unlike most other cell surface receptors, they bind ligands with very low affinity. Due to their weak individual binding, integrins need to cluster and bind in groups in order to effectively bind the ECM.