Proteoglycans have long been recognized as participating in a number of biological activities ranging from structural roles to regulation of transcription. Versican is a large chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan expressed in several tissues, including the nervous system. Significant progress has been made in the understanding of the molecular structure and biological activity of versican. The progress is largely due to the application of recombinant DNA methodology and the generation of domain-specific anti-versican antibodies. In the central and peripheral nervous system, versican is expressed by glial cells and is implicated in the regulation of cell adhesion, migration, pattern formation, and regeneration.