Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P17931 (galectin-3)
 2,860 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The study of animal lectins and glycoconjugates has become an important area of research in biomedical sciences, as these molecules are believed to play important roles in a variety of biological processes. This report describes a study of the expression of an animal lectin, IgE-binding protein (epsilon BP), also known as Mac-2 and CBP35, in human skin. We have analyzed cultured human keratinocytes as well as normal human skin and a number of epidermal neoplasms, by immunoblotting, immunofluorescence and immunohistochemistry. We showed that epsilon BP is expressed in human keratinocytes, hair follicles, sebaceous and sweat glands. We found that epsilon BP expression retains in various epidermal neoplasms, including basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and keratoacanthoma, although the level of expression appears to be reduced as compared to normal epidermis. The immunohistochemical analysis also suggests that the level of epsilon BP expression appears to be dependent on the degree of cellular differentiation of keratinocytes.
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PMID:Expression of epsilon BP, a beta-galactoside-binding soluble lectin, in normal and neoplastic epidermis. 806 35

Galectins are beta-galactoside-binding lectins that play multiple roles during tumor progression. Previous work conducted in our laboratory has demonstrated decreased galectin-3 expression in carcinomas from colon, breast, ovary and endometrium, compared to the corresponding normal tissues. In this study, we examined the pattern of galectin-3 expression by immunohistochemistry in a group of 10 basal cell carcinomas of the skin. In the surrounding normal skin, galectin-3 immunostaining was found predominantly in the middle epidermis (spine layer) and eccrine sweat glands. Compared to the normal epidermal cells, basal carcinoma cells observed in all 10 samples examined presented with significantly decreased galectin-3 immunostaining. These data further demonstrates that galectin-3 is down-regulated in a variety of human cancers, including basal cell carcinoma.
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PMID:Decreased expression of galectin-3 in basal cell carcinoma of the skin. 1037 95

Galectin-3 is a ss-galactoside-binding lectin. It participates in a variety of normal and pathologic processes, including cancer progression. In this study, we evaluated the pattern of expression of galectin-3 in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and basal cell carcinoma (BCC), and its correlation with the grade of differentiation in SCC and tumor size. Galectin-3 expression was evaluated by immunohistochemistry in 31 SCCs, 30 BCCs, and 29 non-tumoral skin samples. Galectin-3 expression was higher in normal epidermis than in non-melanoma skin cancers, except for cytoplasmic immunoreactivity in SCC. Cytoplasmic galectin-3 immunoreactivity was significantly higher than nuclear immunoreactivity in non-melanoma skin cancers. Cytoplasmic galectin-3 immunoreactivity was significantly higher in SCC than in both circumscribed and infiltrative BCCs, but no difference was detected between these two types of BCC. Cytoplasmic galectin-3 immunoreactivity predominated within SCCs (p=0.000), and a positive correlation was detected between tumor size and cytoplasmic immunoreactivity (r=0.385, p=0.043). There was no correlation between galectin-3 staining and tumor differentiation and lymph node metastasis. Decreased nuclear galectin-3 expression and cytoplasmic immunoreactivity in tumors are important factors in the progression from the normal to the cancerous state in non-melanoma skin cancers. We speculate that cytoplasmic galectin-3 expression may be one of the factors that contribute to tumor aggressiveness in SCC.
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PMID:Immunohistochemical galectin-3 expression in non-melanoma skin cancers. 1895 31

Galectin-3 is highly expressed in epithelial cells including keratinocytes and is involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory skin diseases by affecting the functions of immune cells. For example, galectin-3 can contribute to atopic dermatitis (AD) by promoting polarization toward a Th2 immune response by regulating dendritic cell (DC) and T cell functions. In addition, galectin-3 may be involved in the development of contact hypersensitivity by regulating the migratory capacity of antigen presenting cells. Galectin-3 may act as a regulator of epithelial tumor progression and development through various signaling pathways, such as inhibiting keratinocyte apoptosis through regulation of the activation status of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and activated protein kinase B (AKT). Galectin-3 is detected at different stages of melanoma development. In contrast, a marked decrease in the expression of galectin-3 is observed in non-melanoma skin cancers, such as squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and basal cell carcinoma (BCC). Galectin-3 may play an important role in tumor cell growth, apoptosis, cell motility, invasion, and metastasis. Galectin-3 may be a novel therapeutic target for a variety of skin diseases.
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PMID:Galectin-3 and the skin. 2188 81

Galectin-3 has been suggested relative to tumor genesis, progression, and metastasis in basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma that are the most common skin cancers characterized by malignant epidermal proliferation. In this study, we evaluated galectin-3 expression in seborrheic keratosis, keratoacanthoma, and infectious diseases including verruca vulgaris, condyloma acuminatum, and chromoblastomycosis that are pathologically featured by benign epidermal proliferation. Galectin-3 expression was shown by immunohistochemical staining and quantified using the Image Pro Plus V6.0. We found that galectin-3 distributed evenly in normal skin around the body decreased significantly in all selected diseases compared with healthy controls, but it was comparable among each disease. These findings imply that galectin-3 do not differentiate between benign and malignant proliferation of keratinocytes.
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PMID:Galectin-3 Expression in Benign and Malignant Skin Diseases With Epidermal Hyperplasia. 2792 92