INVESTIGADORES
RABINOVICH Gabriel Adrian
artículos
Título:
GALECTINS AS POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC TARGETS IN STIs IN THE FEMALE GENITAL TRACT
Autor/es:
AGUSTIN LUJAN; DIEGO CROCI; GABRIEL RABINOVICH* ; MARIA T. DAMIANI* (* CO-SENIORS)
Revista:
NATURE REVIEWS UROLOGY
Editorial:
NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP
Referencias:
Lugar: Londres; Año: 2022
ISSN:
1759-4812
Resumen:
Abstract | Every day, >1 million people worldwide acquire a sexually transmittedinfection (STI). This public health problem has a direct effect on women?sreproductive and sexual health, as STIs can cause irreversible damage to fertilityand can have negative consequences associated with discrimination and socialexclusion. Infection with one sexually transmitted pathogen predisposes toco-infection with others, suggesting the existence of shared pathways that serveas molecular links between these diseases. Galectins, a family of β-galactosidebindingproteins, have emerged as endogenous mediators that facilitatecell-surface binding, internalization and cell invasion of many sexually transmittedpathogens, including Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Trichomonasvaginalis, Candida albicans, HIV and herpes simplex virus. The ability of certaingalectins to dimerize or form multimeric complexes confers the capacity tointeract simultaneously with glycosylated ligands in both the pathogen and thecervico-vaginal tissue on these proteins. Galectins can act as a bridge by engagingglycans from the pathogen surface and glycosylated receptors from host cells,which is a mechanism that has been shown to be shared by several sexuallytransmitted pathogens. In the case of viruses and obligate intracellular bacteria,binding to the cell surface promotes pathogen internalization and cell invasion.Inflammatory responses that occur in cervico-vaginal tissue might trigger secretionof galectins, which in turn control the establishment, evolution and severity of STIs.Thus, galectin-targeted therapies could potentially prevent or decrease STIscaused by a diverse array of pathogenic microorganisms; furthermore, anti-galectinagents might reduce treatment costs of STIs and reach the most vulnerablepopulation