UniProt Accession Number of Target Protein: O08573

Alternative Name(s) of Target: ecalectin; Gal-9; galectin 9; Galectin-9; HUAT; lectin, galactose binding, soluble 5; LGALS9A; tumor antigen HOM-HD-21; urate transporter/channel protein.Immunogen: This antibody was raised by immunising rats with recombinant mouse galectin-9.

Specificity: This antibody is specific for murine galectin-9, a 40 kDa S-type lectin that is expressed by various cell types including lymphocytes, thymocytes, macrophages, dendritic cells, astrocytes, mast cells, eosinophils, fibroblasts, epithelial cells, and endothelial cells. Galectin-9 binds to β-galactosides and can serve as a ligand for TIM-3 (CD366). The protein is implicated in both innate and adaptive immune responses specifically, induction of cytokine secretion by macrophages, bactericidal functions, promotion of dendritic cell maturation, regulatory T cell expansion, and negative regulation of Th1, Th17, NK, and cytotoxic T cells.

Application Notes: When this antibody was first generated and characterised, it was shown to bind with galectin-9 but not with either galectin-1 or galectin-3, and to be capable of blocking Tim-3-Fc binding to galectin-9 and inhibiting galectin-9-induced Th1 cell death in vitro (Fukushima et al, 2008). This antibody has been used in FACS analyses, for instance, to describe a novel mechanism where Tim-3 binds HMGB-1 on virus-specific CD8+ Treg cells suppressing proliferation of CD8+ T effector cells during acute adenoviral infection (Dolina et al, 2014), and to indicate a crucial role for Tim-3 in phagocytosis of apoptotic cells and cross-presentation (Nakayama et al, 2009). In addition, this antibody has been used in vivo to study the roles of galectin-9 in the development of experimental allergic conjunctivitis in mice (Fukushima et al, 2008) and to demonstrate that constitutive expression of Gal-9 plays an immunosuppressive role in corneal allografts (Shimmura-Tomita et al, 2013).

Antibody first published in:Fukushima et al.Roles of galectin-9 in the development of experimental allergic conjunctivitis in mice.Int Arch Allergy Immunol. 2008;146(1):36-43.PMID:18087160Note on publication:Describe the original generation of this antibody and its subsequent use in in vitro and in vivo functional assays to study the roles of galectin-9 in the development of experimental allergic conjunctivitis in mice.