Epithelial cells adhere to one another through tight junctions, desmosomes and adherens junctions, forming sheets of cells that line the surface of the animal body and internal cavities (e.g., digestive tract and circulatory system). These cells have an apical-basal polarity defined by the apical membrane facing the outside surface of the body, or the lumen of internal cavities, and the basolateral membrane oriented away from the lumen. The basolateral membrane refers to both the lateral membrane where cell-cell junctions connect neighboring cells and to the basal membrane where cells are attached to the basement membrane, a thin sheet of extracellular matrix proteins that separates the epithelial sheet from underlying cells and connective tissue. Epithelial cells also exhibit planar cell polarity,in which specialized structures are orientated within the plane of the epithelial sheet. Some examples of planar cell polarity include the scales of fish being oriented in the same direction and similarly the feathers of birds, the fur of mammals, and the cuticular projections (sensory hairs, etc.) on the bodies and appendages of flies and other insects