Glycobiology Advance Access originally published online on July 13, 2006
Glycobiology 2006 16(11):137R-157R; doi:10.1093/glycob/cwl025
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Galectin-1: a small protein with major functions
2 Laboratory of Toxicology, Institute of Pharmacy, Free University of Brussels (ULB), Brussels; 3 XPeDoc sprl, rue Halvaux 37, 7090 Ronquières; and 4 Department of Neurosurgery, Erasmus University Hospital, Free University of Brussels (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
1 To whom correspondence should be addressed; e-mail: rkiss{at}ulb.ac.be
Received on February 17, 2006; revised on July 10, 2006; accepted on July 11, 2006
Galectins are a family of carbohydrate-binding proteins with an affinity for ß-galactosides. Galectin-1 (Gal-1) is differentially expressed by various normal and pathological tissues and appears to be functionally polyvalent, with a wide range of biological activity. The intracellular and extracellular activity of Gal-1 has been described. Evidence points to Gal-1 and its ligands as one of the master regulators of such immune responses as T-cell homeostasis and survival, T-cell immune disorders, inflammation and allergies as well as host–pathogen interactions. Gal-1 expression or overexpression in tumors and/or the tissue surrounding them must be considered as a sign of the malignant tumor progression that is often related to the long-range dissemination of tumoral cells (metastasis), to their dissemination into the surrounding normal tissue, and to tumor immune-escape. Gal-1 in its oxidized form plays a number of important roles in the regeneration of the central nervous system after injury. The targeted overexpression (or delivery) of Gal-1 should be considered as a method of choice for the treatment of some kinds of inflammation-related diseases, neurodegenerative pathologies and muscular dystrophies. In contrast, the targeted inhibition of Gal-1 expression is what should be developed for therapeutic applications against cancer progression. Gal-1 is thus a promising molecular target for the development of new and original therapeutic tools.
Key words: cancer / inflammation / neurodegeneration / therapeutic application / tumor immune-escape
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