ABOVE: A tissue section from a prostate cancer patient who produces Siglec-XII (stained brown), which is much more highly expressed in malignant cells than normal cells.
FASEB BIOADVANCES, DOI:10.1096/FBA.2020-00092, 2020
The paper
S.S. Siddiqui et al., “Human-specific polymorphic pseudogenization of SIGLEC12 protects against advanced cancer progression,” FASEB BioAdvances, 3:69–82, 2021.
Among a group of cell surface proteins known as sialic-acid-binding immunoglobulin-like lectins (Siglecs), CD33-related Siglecs are found mainly on innate immune cells and are involved in cell signaling. One Siglec, however, appears to have “gone rogue” in humans, according to Ajit and Nissi Varki, a husband-and-wife team at the UC San Diego School of Medicine.
Siglec-XII, encoded by the gene SIGLEC12, no longer binds sialic acid and seems to be involved in abnormal cell signaling in humans, the researchers report. The Varkis argue that the protein plays a role in cancer progression and could help explain why humans have much higher ...
