A structure lying external to one or more cells, which provides structural support, biochemical or biomechanical cues for cells or tissues. [ GOC:BHF http://www.neurolex.org/wiki/nlx_subcell_20090513 GOC:rph http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21123617 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28089324 GOC:mah ]

Synonyms: proteinaceous extracellular matrix