Reprogramming the tumor metastasis cascade by targeting galectin-driven networks

RAMIRO M. PERROTTA; CAMILA BACH; MARIANA SALATINO; GABRIEL RABINOVICH

BIOCHEMICAL JOURNAL

PORTLAND PRESS LTD

Lugar: Londres; Año: 2021 p. 597 - 617

0264-6021

A sequence of interconnected events known as the metastatic cascadepromotes tumor progression by regulating cellular and molecular interactionsbetween tumor, stromal, endothelial, and immune cells both locally andsystemically. Recently a new concept has emerged to better describe this processby defining four attributes that metastatic cells should undergo. Every individualhallmark represents a unique trait of a metastatic cell that impacts directly in theoutcome of the metastasis process. These critical features, known as the hallmarksof metastasis, include motility and invasion, modulation of the microenvironment,cell plasticity and colonization. They are hierarchically regulated at different levelsby several factors, including galectins, a highly conserved family of β-galactosidebinding proteins abundantly expressed in tumor microenvironments and sites ofmetastasis. In this review, we discuss the role of galectins in modulating eachhallmark of metastasis, highlighting novel therapeutic opportunities for treating themetastatic disease.