Galectins as Molecular Targets for Therapeutic Intervention

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 19; no. 3; p. 905
• Main Authors: Dings, Ruud P M, Miller, Michelle C, Griffin, Robert J, Mayo, Kevin H
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 19.03.2018; MDPI
• Subjects: Amino acids; Angiogenesis; Animals; Apoptosis; Binding sites; Biological activity; Cancer; Carbohydrates; Carbohydrates - chemistry; cell adhesion; Cell surface; Chemical bonds; Chemotaxis; Drug Therapy, Combination; Epitopes; galectin-targeted therapeutics; galectins; Galectins - chemistry; Galectins - metabolism; Glycoconjugates; Humans; Lactose; Molecular Targeted Therapy; protein structure; Proteins; Review; Sandwiches; Structure-function relationships; carbohydrates; protein structure; galectins; cell adhesion; apoptosis; galectin-targeted therapeutics; cancer
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms19030905

Galectins are a family of small, highly conserved, molecular effectors that mediate various biological processes, including chemotaxis and angiogenesis, and that function by interacting with various cell surface glycoconjugates, usually targeting β-galactoside epitopes. Because of their significant involvement in various biological functions and pathologies, galectins have become a focus of therapeutic discovery for clinical intervention against cancer, among other pathological disorders. In this review, we focus on understanding galectin structure-function relationships, their mechanisms of action on the molecular level, and targeting them for therapeutic intervention against cancer.