<b>Methods:</b> Papillary (BcPAP) and anaplastic (CAL62 and FRO82-1) thyroid carcinoma cell lines were characterized via Western blot and polymerase chain reaction for gal-3 and sodium-iodide symporter (NIS) expression.
Additionally, given its role in tumorigenesis and cancer progression, galectin-3 targeting is currently under investigation for its potential utility as treatment for thyroid cancer.<b>Areas covered</b>: Recent studies of galectin-3 as a serum marker for thyroid cancer diagnosis, and in the preclinical setting as a target for cancer imaging and therapy.<b>Expert opinion</b>: Even though current studies evaluating galectin-3 as a serum marker and target for cancer imaging and therapy are promising, further research is required before it can be adopted into routine clinical use.
In this review, the biological role of galectin-3 expression in thyroid cancer, the validation and translation to a clinical setting of a galectin-3 test method for the preoperative characterization of thyroid nodules and a galectin-3-based immuno-positron emission tomography (immuno-PET) imaging of thyroid cancer in vivo are presented and discussed.
Similar to other immune markers of HBME-1, galectin-3 and CK-19, protein expression levels of PIWIL2 was significantly up-regulated in both papillary and micropapillary thyroid cancers (p < 0.01).
Accordingly, runx2 transcription factor inhibitors can be a potential target in order to prevent gal-3 mediated malignancy of human thyroid carcinoma..
We conclude that wild-type K-Ras.GTP in association with Gal-3 contributes to thyroid carcinoma malignancy and that Ras inhibition might be a useful treatment strategy against these deadly tumors.
However, for cancer prediction, analysis of a minimum of six genes per sample was necessary and allowed correct prediction of a benign thyroid lesion and thyroid cancer with 94% accuracy in the most discriminative set (TFF3/PLAB/TG/ADM3/HGD1/LGALS3).
DNA analysis of a human pituitary tumor, breast carcinoma cell lines, and thyroid carcinoma cell lines showed that in cells expressing Gal-3 protein, the LGALS3 gene was unmethylated, whereas in Gal-3 null cells, the promoter of the LGALS3 gene was methylated.
Oncofetal fibronectin (onfFN) and galectin-3 (Gale-3) have been proposed as possible tools for the preoperative diagnosis of thyroid carcinomas, based on the finding that the expression of both onfFN and Gale-3 are significantly increased in papillary and anaplastic carcinomas, compared to normal thyroid tissues and follicular adenomas.
In contrast to the previous optimistic reports using immunohistochemical analysis of the galectin-3 protein expression, these results demonstrate that galectin-3 mRNA may not be a suitable target for molecular-based diagnosis of thyroid carcinomas.
In conclusion, we demonstrate that galectin-3 and CD26/DPPIV were consistently coexpressed at protein and mRNA levels in differentiated thyroid carcinomas.
Galectin-3, a lectin-family protein that appears to be involved in malignant transformation, has been reported to be an accurate immunohistochemical marker for thyroid cancer.
Thus, the use of galectin-3 immunodetection as a molecular marker for thyroid carcinoma must be interpreted with caution, particularly in the differentiation between thyroid follicular carcinoma and follicular adenoma.