title: The pleiotropic effects of galectin-3 in neuroinflammation: a review.
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.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Anatomy, College of Veterinary Medicine and Veterinary Medical Research Institute, Jeju National University, Jeju 690-756, Republic of Korea. shint@jejunu.ac.kr
authors.forename: Taekyun
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001798:Blood Proteins; D001921:Brain / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D004660:Encephalitis / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D018792:Encephalitis, Viral / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D004681:Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D037502:Galectin 3 / Q000378:metabolism*; D037161:Galectins; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D001798:Blood Proteins; D037502:Galectin 3; D037161:Galectins; C428445:LGALS3 protein, human