These filaments often run across the cell laterally and are important in tissues where the cells are subjected to lateral stress, such as the skin or lining of the urinary bladder. Desmosomes are also known as macula adherens and are like spot welds between adjacent cells (macula is Latin for 'spot'). Hemidesmosomes (half-desmosomes) are small bundles of keratin filaments which anchor the basal membrane of an epithelial cell to the underlying connective tissue.