Jiang Qian, Zhao Qijin, Li Pingping
State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100050, China; Diabetes Research Center of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100050, China; CAMS Key Laboratory of Molecular Mechanism and Target Discovery of Metabolic Disorder and Tumorigenesis, Beijing 100050, China.
State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100050, China; Diabetes Research Center of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100050, China; CAMS Key Laboratory of Molecular Mechanism and Target Discovery of Metabolic Disorder and Tumorigenesis, Beijing 100050, China.
Trends Mol Med. 2025 May;31(5):424-437. doi: 10.1016/j.molmed.2024.11.006. Epub 2024 Dec 16.
Galectin-3 (Gal3), a β-galactoside-binding lectin, is expressed predominantly in immunological and inflammatory cells. Gal3 expression is elevated in metabolic diseases, including obesity, diabetes, and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), and plays an important role in the progression of these diseases. In this review, we summarize the structure and post-translational modifications of Gal3 and the cellular functions of Gal3 according to its subcellular localization. We focused on the pathological functions and molecular mechanisms of Gal3 in various cell types. In particular, extracellular Gal3 and intracellular Gal3 may have different physiological and pathological functions. We also discuss promising Gal3 inhibitors or antibodies that are currently in clinical trials and outstanding questions and challenges for future pursuit.
半乳糖凝集素-3（Gal3）是一种β-半乳糖苷结合凝集素，主要在免疫和炎症细胞中表达。Gal3在包括肥胖、糖尿病和代谢功能障碍相关脂肪性肝病（MASLD）在内的代谢性疾病中表达升高，并在这些疾病的进展中起重要作用。在本综述中，我们根据Gal3的亚细胞定位总结了其结构、翻译后修饰及其细胞功能。我们重点关注了Gal3在各种细胞类型中的病理功能和分子机制。特别是，细胞外Gal3和细胞内Gal3可能具有不同的生理和病理功能。我们还讨论了目前正在进行临床试验的有前景的Gal3抑制剂或抗体，以及未来需要解决的突出问题和挑战。
