title: Galectin-4 expression is down-regulated in response to autophagy during differentiation of rat trophoblast cells.
abstract: Placental development and trophoblast invasion of the maternal endometrium establish the maternal-fetal interface, which is critical for the developing embryo and fetus. Herein we show that overexpression of Galectin-4 (Gal-4) during trophoblast differentiation inhibited the enlargement of Rcho-1 cells (a model for rat trophoblast differentiation) and promoted cell-cell adhesion, whereas trophoblast specific markers and MMP-9 activity were not affected. In the rat placenta, microtubule associated protein 1 light chain 3 alpha (LC3) protein, an autophagy marker, is highly expressed on the maternal side of the decidua where Gal-4 expression is weak. In vitro assays showed that the expression of trophoblast-specific differentiation markers was reduced by 3-Methyladenine (3-MA) and Bafilomycin A1, known as autophagy inhibitors, compared to control cells. Furthermore, Gal-4 expression in Rcho-1 cells, which is normally down-regulated during differentiation, was not attenuated in the presence of autophagy inhibitors, suggesting that autophagy is upstream of Gal-4 expression. We herein describe a possible mechanism by which autophagy regulates trophoblast differentiation via regulation of Gal-4 expression in order to establish the maternal-fetal interface.
authors: Department of Biology, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Ishikawa, Japan.
authors: Tomohiro
authors: T
authors: Arikawa
authors: Department of Biology, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Ishikawa, Japan.|Medical Research Institute, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Ishikawa, Japan.|Department of Clinical Laboratory, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China.
authors: Shengjun
authors: S
authors: Liao
authors: Department of Anatomy, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Ishikawa, Japan.
authors: Hiroki
authors: H
authors: Shimada
authors: Department of Mathematics, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Ishikawa, Japan.
authors: Tomoki
authors: T
authors: Inoue
authors: Department of Anatomy, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Ishikawa, Japan.
authors: Hiromi
authors: H
authors: Sakata-Haga
authors: Department of Endocrinology, Faculty of Medicine, Kagawa University, Kagawa, Japan.
authors: Takanori
authors: T
authors: Nakamura
authors: Department of Anatomy, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Ishikawa, Japan.
authors: Toshihisa
authors: T
authors: Hatta
authors: Department of Biology, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Ishikawa, Japan.
authors: Hiroki
authors: H
authors: Shoji
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001343:Autophagy / Q000235:genetics*; D002448:Cell Adhesion / Q000235:genetics; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000235:genetics*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D015536:Down-Regulation; D005260:Female; D037541:Galectin 4 / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D010920:Placenta / Q000378:metabolism; D010929:Placentation / Q000235:genetics; D011247:Pregnancy; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D059008:Time-Lapse Imaging / Q000379:methods; D014327:Trophoblasts / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D037541:Galectin 4