Next Article in Journal
Evaluation of Collagenic Porcine Bone Blended with a Collagen Gel for Bone Regeneration: An In Vitro Study
Previous Article in Journal
Navigating the Landscape of Liquid Biopsy in Colorectal Cancer: Current Insights and Future Directions
Previous Article in Special Issue
Inflammaging-Driven Osteoporosis: Is a Galectin-Targeted Approach Needed?
 
 
Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
Journals
IJMS
Volume 26
Issue 15
10.3390/ijms26157622
ijms-logo
Submit to this Journal Review for this Journal Propose a Special Issue
► Article Menu

Article Menu

share Share announcement Help format_quote Cite question_answer Discuss in SciProfiles
first_page
settings
Order Article Reprints
Font Type:
Arial Georgia Verdana
Font Size:
Aa Aa Aa
Line Spacing:
Column Width:
Background:
This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Role of Endogenous Galectin-3 on Cell Biology of Immortalized Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells In Vitro † †

by
Caspar Liesenhoff
1,
Marlene Hillenmayer
1,
Caroline Havertz
1,
Arie Geerlof
2,
Daniela Hartmann
3,4,
Siegfried G. Priglinger
1,
Claudia S. Priglinger
1,‡ and
Andreas Ohlmann
1,*,‡
1
Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, 80336 Munich, Germany
2
Protein Expression and Purification Facility, Institute of Structural Biology, Helmholtz Center Munich for Environmental Health, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany
3
Department of Dermatology and Allergy, LMU University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, 80337 Munich, Germany
4
Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Munich Municipal Hospital, 80337 Munich, Germany
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
This article is a revised and expanded version of a paper entitled “Role of Galectin-3 on Cell Biology of Immortalized Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells In Vitro”, which was presented at ARVO 2025 Annual Meeting, Salt Lake City, UT, USA, 4–8 May 2025.
‡
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(15), 7622; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26157622
Submission received: 15 June 2025 / Revised: 30 July 2025 / Accepted: 1 August 2025 / Published: 6 August 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Galectins (Gals), 2nd Edition)
Versions Notes

Abstract

 Galectin-3 is a multifunctional protein that is associated with diseases of the chorioretinal interface, in which the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) plays a central role in disease development and progression. Since galectin-3 can function extracellularly as well as intracellularly via different mechanisms, we developed an immortalized human RPE cell line (ARPE-19) with a knockdown for galectin-3 expression (ARPE-19/LGALS3+/−) using a sgRNA/Cas9 all-in-one expression vector. By Western blot analysis, a reduced galectin-3 expression of approximately 48 to 60% in heterozygous ARPE-19/LGALS3+/− cells was observed when compared to native controls. Furthermore, ARPE-19/LGALS3+/− cells displayed a flattened, elongated phenotype with decreased E-cadherin as well as enhanced N-cadherin and α-smooth muscle actin mRNA expression, indicating an epithelial–mesenchymal transition of the cells. Compared to wildtype controls, ARPE-19/LGALS3+/− cells had significantly reduced metabolic activity to 86% and a substantially decreased proliferation to 73%. Furthermore, an enhanced cell adhesion and a diminished migration of immortalized galectin-3 knockdown RPE cells was observed compared to native ARPE-19 cells. Finally, by Western blot analysis, reduced pAKT, pERK1/2, and β-catenin signaling were detected in ARPE-19/LGALS3+/− cells when compared to wildtype controls. In summary, in RPE cells, endogenous galectin-3 appears to be essential for maintaining the epithelial phenotype as well as cell biological functions such as metabolism, proliferation, or migration, effects that might be mediated via a decreased activity of the AKT, ERK1/2, and β-catenin signaling pathways. 

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Liesenhoff, C.; Hillenmayer, M.; Havertz, C.; Geerlof, A.; Hartmann, D.; Priglinger, S.G.; Priglinger, C.S.; Ohlmann, A. Role of Endogenous Galectin-3 on Cell Biology of Immortalized Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells In Vitro †. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26, 7622. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26157622

AMA Style

Liesenhoff C, Hillenmayer M, Havertz C, Geerlof A, Hartmann D, Priglinger SG, Priglinger CS, Ohlmann A. Role of Endogenous Galectin-3 on Cell Biology of Immortalized Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells In Vitro †. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2025; 26(15):7622. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26157622

Chicago/Turabian Style

Liesenhoff, Caspar, Marlene Hillenmayer, Caroline Havertz, Arie Geerlof, Daniela Hartmann, Siegfried G. Priglinger, Claudia S. Priglinger, and Andreas Ohlmann. 2025. "Role of Endogenous Galectin-3 on Cell Biology of Immortalized Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells In Vitro †" International Journal of Molecular Sciences 26, no. 15: 7622. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26157622

APA Style

Liesenhoff, C., Hillenmayer, M., Havertz, C., Geerlof, A., Hartmann, D., Priglinger, S. G., Priglinger, C. S., & Ohlmann, A. (2025). Role of Endogenous Galectin-3 on Cell Biology of Immortalized Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells In Vitro †. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 26(15), 7622. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26157622

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

Article Metrics

Back to TopTop