The Role of Serum Galectin-3 Levels in Patients with Sarcoidosis


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Kara K., Onur S. T., Sokucu S. N., Kahya O., Ozdemir C., ADEMOĞLU E.

MEDICAL PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE, vol.31, no.1, pp.59-65, 2022 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 31 Issue: 1
  • Publication Date: 2022
  • Doi Number: 10.1159/000521467
  • Journal Name: MEDICAL PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, CINAHL, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Directory of Open Access Journals
  • Page Numbers: pp.59-65
  • Keywords: Sarcoidosis, Galectin-3, Pulmonary fibrosis, Inflammation, PROGNOSTIC VALUE, INFLAMMATION, EXPRESSION, FIBROSIS
  • Istanbul University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Introduction: Galectin-3 is a multifunctional protein, the levels of which increase in the presence of diseases that progress with pulmonary fibrosis. This study investigated the role of galectin-3 levels in the staging and assessing of the severity of sarcoidosis. Methods and Subjects: Seventy-three subjects were studied; 25 were healthy individuals and 48 patients had pathologically confirmed diagnosis of sarcoidosis in which other potential causes had been ruled out. Galectin-3 levels were measured and compared in terms of such parameters as hemogram, biochemistry, age, body mass index, and smoking status. Results: The mean galectin-3 levels of the sarcoidosis patients (14.87 +/- 5.57) were significantly higher than those in the healthy subjects (11.81 +/- 2.67), and the mean galectin-3 levels differed significantly among different stages of the disease (p < 0.05). The serum galectin-3 level in patients with stage 2, 3, and 4 sarcoidosis was found to be higher than in patients with stage 0 and 1 sarcoidosis and the control group. In addition, serum galectin-3 levels in the sarcoidosis patients had significant positive correlations with blood urea nitrogen, alkaline phosphatase, white blood cells, red blood cell, hemoglobin, and neutrophil levels (34.9% [p < 0.05]; 40.1% [p < 0.05]; 41.2% [p < 0.01]; 43.3% [p < 0.01]; 34.7% [p < 0.05]; and 40.6% [p < 0.01], respectively) and a significant negative correlation with the platelet distribution width levels (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Serum galectin-3 levels are significantly elevated in sarcoidosis patients with parenchymal involvement at stage 2 or higher, suggesting that serum galectin-3 levels can be used to estimate disease severity in sarcoidosis. (C) 2021 The Author(s) Published by S. Karger AG, Basel