Gillenwater A, Xu X C, el-Naggar A K, Clayman G L, Lotan R
Department of Tumor Biology, University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston 77030, USA.
Head Neck. 1996 Sep-Oct;18(5):422-32. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0347(199609/10)18:5<422::AID-HED5>3.0.CO;2-7.
Galectins are carbohydrate-binding proteins thought to be important for cell growth and differentiation, whose expression is altered in some tumors with aggressive phenotype. Our objective was to evaluate the expression of galectins in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).
Fourteen HNSCC cell lines and four primary tumor specimens were evaluated using immunoblotting, and immunohistochemical analysis was performed on 35 primary HNSCCs.
Galectin-1 and galectin-3 were expressed in most HNSCC cell lines and primary tumor specimens. Galectin-1 was detected in the basal layer of normal adjacent mucosa, in connective tissue stroma, and at the periphery of invasive tumor islands. Galectin-3 localized to superficial mucosal layers, and adjacent to keratin pearls in invasive carcinoma.
Galectins are manifested in HNSCC tumors and are localized to the cell surface, where they may participate in cellular interactions. The expression pattern of galectins appears to be associated with degree of squamous differentiation, suggesting a potential role for galectins as biologic and differentiation markers in HNSCC.
半乳糖凝集素是一类碳水化合物结合蛋白，被认为对细胞生长和分化很重要，其表达在一些具有侵袭性表型的肿瘤中会发生改变。我们的目的是评估半乳糖凝集素在头颈部鳞状细胞癌（HNSCC）中的表达情况。
使用免疫印迹法对14种HNSCC细胞系和4份原发性肿瘤标本进行评估，并对35例原发性HNSCC进行免疫组织化学分析。
半乳糖凝集素-1和半乳糖凝集素-3在大多数HNSCC细胞系和原发性肿瘤标本中均有表达。在正常邻近黏膜的基底层、结缔组织基质以及侵袭性肿瘤岛的周边检测到半乳糖凝集素-1。半乳糖凝集素-3定位于浅表黏膜层以及侵袭性癌中与角化珠相邻的部位。
半乳糖凝集素在HNSCC肿瘤中表达，并定位于细胞表面，在那里它们可能参与细胞间相互作用。半乳糖凝集素的表达模式似乎与鳞状分化程度相关，提示半乳糖凝集素在HNSCC中作为生物学和分化标志物具有潜在作用。
