Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 23, 2026

Characterization of Cell Membrane Extensions and Studying Their Roles in Cancer Cell Adhesion Dynamics
Published on: March 26, 2018
Examination of the regulation of galectin-3 expression in cancer
Hafiz Ahmed1, Gargi Bandyopadhyaya
1Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology, Greenebaum Cancer Center, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 701 East Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202, USA, hfzahmed86@gmail.com.
Abstract:
Galectin-3, a member of a β-galactoside-binding protein family, is involved in normal growth development as well as cancer progression and metastasis, but the detailed mechanisms of its functions or its transcriptional regulations are not well understood. Besides, several regulatory elements such as GC box, CRE motif, AP-1 site, and NF-κB sites, the promoter of galectin-3 gene (LGALS3) contains several CpG islands that can be methylated during tumorigenesis of prostate leading to the gene silencing. Here we describe protocols for identification of galectin-3 DNA methylation, suppression of DNA methyltransferases to reactivate galectin-3 expression, and development of methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MS-PCR) to assess galectin-3 expression in various biological specimens such as tissue, serum, and urine samples.
Related Concept Videos
Receptor Downregulation in MVBs
The EGFR can initiate signaling pathways that lead to cell proliferation, migration, and differentiation. Overexpression of EGFR stimulates cells to proliferate. Excessive EGFR...
Activation of Integrins
In "outside-in signaling," external factors in the extracellular space bind to exposed ligand binding sites on integrins. This causes the inactive protein to undergo a conformational change to become active. Integrins are often clustered on the cell membrane. Repetitive and regularly spaced ligand binding...
mTOR Signaling and Cancer Progression
The mTOR pathway or the...
