Compared to melanoma cells in the epidermis, melanoma cells located in the dermal compartment had significantly higher expression of proteins involved in remodeling of the extracellular matrix (e.g., DPT, COL1A2, COL1A1, COL3A1, COL6A1, DCN, TGFBI, PRELP, DCN, FGA, FN1, and LUM) (Fig 7E). This evidence concerns the gene FN1 and melanoma.