Modulation of endothelial cell migration and angiogenesis: a novel function for the "tandem-repeat" lectin galectin-8.
FASEB J
; 25(1): 242-54, 2011 Jan.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-20876211
ABSTRACT
Angiogenesis, the growth of new capillaries from preexisting blood vessels, is a complex process involving endothelial cell (EC) activation, disruption of vascular basement membranes, and migration and proliferation of ECs. Glycan-mediated recognition has been proposed to play an instrumental role in mediating cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions. Galectins (Gal), a family of glycan-binding proteins with affinity for ß-galactosides and a conserved sequence motif, can decipher glycan-containing information and mediate cell-cell communication. Galectin-8 (Gal-8), a member of this family, is a bivalent "tandem-repeat"-type galectin, which possesses 2 CRDs connected by a linker peptide. Here, we show that Gal-8 is endowed with proangiogeneic properties. Functional assays revealed a critical role for this lectin in the regulation of capillary-tube formation and EC migration. Moreover, Matrigel, either supplemented with Gal-8 or vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), injected in mice resulted in induction of in vivo angiogenesis. Remarkably, Gal-8 was expressed both in the cytoplasm and nucleus in ECs of normal and tumor vessels. Furthermore, CD166 [activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM)] was identified as a specific Gal-8-binding partner in normal vascular ECs. Collectively, these data provide the first evidence demonstrating an essential role for Gal-8 in the regulation of angiogenesis with critical implications in tumor biology.
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Cell Movement
/
Neovascularization, Physiologic
/
Galectins
/
Endothelial Cells
Type of study:
Prognostic_studies
Limits:
Animals
/
Female
/
Humans
Language:
En
Journal:
FASEB J
Journal subject:
BIOLOGIA
/
FISIOLOGIA
Year:
2011
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Argentina