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Review
. 2021 Sep 9;13(18):4529.
doi: 10.3390/cancers13184529.

Unraveling How Tumor-Derived Galectins Contribute to Anti-Cancer Immunity Failure

Diego José Laderach  1   2   3 , Daniel Compagno  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Unraveling How Tumor-Derived Galectins Contribute to Anti-Cancer Immunity Failure

Diego José Laderach et al. Cancers (Basel). .

Abstract

Current data indicates that anti-tumor T cell-mediated immunity correlates with a better prognosis in cancer patients. However, it has widely been demonstrated that tumor cells negatively manage immune attack by activating several immune-suppressive mechanisms. It is, therefore, essential to fully understand how lymphocytes are activated in a tumor microenvironment and, above all, how to prevent these cells from becoming dysfunctional. Tumors produce galectins-1, -3, -7, -8, and -9 as one of the major molecular mechanisms to evade immune control of tumor development. These galectins impact different steps in the establishment of the anti-tumor immune responses. Here, we carry out a critical dissection on the mechanisms through which tumor-derived galectins can influence the production and the functionality of anti-tumor T lymphocytes. This knowledge may help us design more effective immunotherapies to treat human cancers.

Keywords: cancer immunotherapy; galectins; lymphocyte homeostasis; tumor immune evasion.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no financial conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Local and systemic effects of circulating tumor-derived galectins.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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