The pleiotropic effects of galectin-3 in neuroinflammation: a review - PubMed (original) (raw)

Review

. 2013 Jun;115(5):407-11.

doi: 10.1016/j.acthis.2012.11.010. Epub 2013 Jan 7.

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Review

The pleiotropic effects of galectin-3 in neuroinflammation: a review

Taekyun Shin. Acta Histochem. 2013 Jun.

Abstract

The β-galactoside-binding lectin, galectin-3, is expressed in a variety of mammalian cells and tissues. It is involved in cell adhesion, activation, proliferation, apoptosis and cell migration. It also plays an important role in inflammation as a pro-inflammatory mediator. The involvement of galectin-3 in various inflammation models, including those of autoimmune disease, skin disease, and cancer, has been investigated extensively. Moreover, galectin-3 has been suggested to be a therapeutic target for various diseases. The present review deals with the expression of galectin-3 in central nervous system (CNS) tissues during normal development and in various models of inflammation. The available information indicates that galectin-3 is essential for normal brain development and plays diverse roles in CNS inflammation, combining pro-inflammatory roles with re-modeling capacity in damaged CNS tissues.

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