ArticleJournal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950)2017
Activated Microglia Desialylate and Phagocytose Cells via Neuraminidase, Galectin-3, and Mer Tyrosine Kinase.
Article in Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950), 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 72 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
72 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 109 citations in OpenAlex.
- Mammalian Neuraminidases in Immune-Mediated Diseases: Mucins and Beyond.Frontiers in immunology · 2022Pooled it
- Synthetic viral RNA mimetics induce neuronal loss through microglial phagocytosis.Inflammation research : official journal of the European Histamine Research Society ... [et al.] · 2026Article
- The role of galectins in modulating the tumor microenvironment and driving metastasis in skin cancers.Biological research · 2026Review
- Roles of Microglia in Synaptogenesis, Synaptic Pruning, and Synaptic Plasticity in Physiological Conditions and Central Nervous System Disorders.Current neuropharmacology · 2026Review
- Flavonoid-rich dietary patterns and incident hospital-recorded Parkinson's disease: a prospective UK Biobank study.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Article
- Synaptic-immune interactions in neuropathic pain: complement-mediated remodeling of spinal dorsal horn microcircuits.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2026Review
- Microglial phagocytosis in Alzheimer disease.Nature reviews. Neurology · 2026Review
- Impaired Efferocytosis of Pericytes and Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells in Diabetic Retinopathy.Cells · 2025Review
- Galectin-8 drives ERK-dependent mitochondrial fragmentation, perinuclear relocation and mitophagy, with metabolic adaptations for cell proliferation.European journal of cell biology · 2025Article
- Sweet Aging: Glycocalyx and Galectins in CNS Aging and Neurodegenerative Disorders.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Microglial galectin-3 increases with aging in the mouse hippocampus.The Korean journal of physiology & pharmacology : official journal of the Korean Physiological Society and the Korean Society of Pharmacology · 2025Article
- Reactive Microglia and Astrocytes as Therapeutic Targets in Prion Diseases.Sub-cellular biochemistry · 2025Review
- Surface N- or O-linked glycans on bovine spermatozoa play minimal role in evading macrophage mediated phagocytosis.Frontiers in veterinary science · 2025Article
- Unique Glycans in Synaptic Glycoproteins in Mouse Brain.ACS chemical neuroscience · 2024Article
- Dopaminergic neurons lacking Caspase-3 avoid apoptosis but undergo necrosis after MPTP treatment inducing a Galectin-3-dependent selective microglial phagocytic response.Cell death & disease · 2024Article
- Analysis of gene expression in microglial apoptotic cell clearance following spinal cord injury based on machine learning algorithms.Experimental and therapeutic medicine · 2024Article
- MERTK in the rat trigeminal system: a potential novel target for cluster headache?The journal of headache and pain · 2024Article
- Oseltamivir (Tamiflu), a Commonly Prescribed Antiviral Drug, Mitigates Hearing Loss in Mice.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024Article
- Galectins in epithelial-mesenchymal transition: roles and mechanisms contributing to tissue repair, fibrosis and cancer metastasis.Biological research · 2024Review
- The dual role of microglia in ischemic stroke and its modulation via extracellular vesicles and stem cells.Neuroprotection (Chichester, England) · 2024Review
12 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Activated microglia can phagocytose dying, stressed, or excess neurons and synapses via the phagocytic receptor Mer tyrosine kinase (MerTK). Galectin-3 (Gal-3) can cross-link surface glycoproteins by binding galactose residues that are normally hidden below terminal sialic acid residues. Gal-3 was recently reported to opsonize cells via activating MerTK. We found that LPS-activated BV-2 microglia rapidly released Gal-3, which was blocked by calcineurin inhibitors. Gal-3 bound to MerTK on microglia and to stressed PC12 (neuron-like) cells, and it increased microglial phagocytosis of PC12 cells or primary neurons, which was blocked by inhibition of MerTK. LPS-activated microglia exhibited a sialidase activity that desialylated PC12 cells and could be inhibited by Tamiflu, a neuraminidase (sialidase) inhibitor. Sialidase treatment of PC12 cells enabled Gal-3 to bind and opsonize the live cells for phagocytosis by microglia. LPS-induced microglial phagocytosis of PC12 was prevented by small interfering RNA knockdown of Gal-3 in microglia, lactose inhibition of Gal-3 binding, inhibition of neuraminidase with Tamiflu, or inhibition of MerTK by UNC569. LPS-induced phagocytosis of primary neurons by primary microglia was also blocked by inhibition of MerTK. We conclude that activated microglia release Gal-3 and a neuraminidase that desialylates microglial and PC12 surfaces, enabling Gal-3 binding to PC12 cells and their phagocytosis via MerTK. Thus, Gal-3 acts as an opsonin of desialylated surfaces, and inflammatory loss of neurons or synapses may potentially be blocked by inhibiting neuraminidases, Gal-3, or MerTK.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.