Abstract
BackgroundGalectins constitute a family of β-galactoside-binding proteins, which influence various hallmarks of pancreatic cancer, including cell proliferation, invasion and migration; immune escape; and angiogenesis. Although many studies have concentrated on the role of galectins in pancreatic cancer, the results remain controversial. Hence, we performed a comprehensive meta-analysis to clarify the precise diagnostic and prognostic value of galectins in pancreatic cancer.MethodsPubMed/MEDLINE, EMBASE and Web of Science were used to search related published literature up to July 2019. Pooled hazard ratios (HRs), diagnostic accuracy variables and related 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using STATA 14.0 software.ResultsEleven studies including 1227 participants met our inclusion criteria. High expression of galectin family was not correlated with overall survival (OS) in pancreatic cancer (HR, 1.19; 95% CI 0.67–2.11). According to subgroup analysis, high levels of galectin-1 were significantly correlated with worse OS in pancreatic cancer (HR, 4.77; 95% CI 2.47–9.21), while high levels of tandem-repeat galectins (galectin-4 or galectin-9) predicted both better OS (HR, 0.63; 95% CI 0.46–0.86) and disease-free survival (DFS) (HR, 0.63; 95% CI 0.48–0.83). The expression levels of galectin-3 did not directly correlate with prognosis (HR, 0.99; 95% CI 0.40–2.46). The pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, and negative likelihood ratios of galectin-3 were 0.64 (95% CI 0.41–0.82), 0.76 (95% CI 0.59–0.88), 2.70 (95% CI 1.21–6.1), and 0.47 (95% CI 0.23–0.98), respectively. The area under the curve (AUC) of galectin-3 was 0.77.ConclusionTaken together, our results suggest that high expression of galectin-1 and low levels of galectin-4 or galectin-9 are predictors of worse prognosis in pancreatic cancer patients. The expression of galectin-3 was not directly related to OS and other clinical characteristics. Although galectin-3 exhibited some diagnostic value in patients with pancreatic cancer in this meta-analysis, clinical application prospects remain to be validated. Further studies are warranted to confirm and strengthen these findings.
Highlights
Galectins constitute a family of β-galactoside-binding proteins, which influence various hallmarks of pancreatic cancer, including cell proliferation, invasion and migration; immune escape; and angiogenesis
We initially retrieved 761 publications from the four databases. 178 articles came from Pubmed/ MEDLINE, 310 articles came from EMBASE, and 273 articles came from Web of Science
Eight studies with 672 participants were enrolled for prognostic analysis, and all hazard ratio (HR) and correlated 95% confidence interval (CI) were obtained using the methods mentioned above
Summary
Galectins constitute a family of β-galactoside-binding proteins, which influence various hallmarks of pancreatic cancer, including cell proliferation, invasion and migration; immune escape; and angiogenesis. Chimeric galectin (galectin-3) consists of a single CRD fused to unusual tandem repeats of proline- and glycine-rich short stretches (a total of approximately 120 amino acids) [7]. Galectin-3 (LGALS3, 14q22.3) is the only galectin that belongs to the chimeric galectin, and was first described to be localized to the outer membrane of macrophages (Mac-2 antigen) [10]. It is found in endothelial cells, immune cells and fibroblasts, and can be transported from the nucleus to the cytoplasm to interact with mitochondria and regulate apoptosis [11, 12]. Recent studies have elucidated the biological functions of galectins in tumors, including in the regulation of oncogenesis, cancer cell growth, apoptosis, cell adhesion, migration and immune escape [8]
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