Galectin 1 (LGALS1) is a secretory protein that binds glycans and is involved in cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions. It plays roles as a master regulator of immune responses in immune and neoplastic disease, as well as in cancer progression. It has been shown to act as an autocrine negative growth factor for cell proliferation, plays a role in immune tolerance in pregnancy, in immunosuppression of T-cells, in synapse formation between pre-B and stromal cells, in the differentiation of dendritic cells, as well as axon regeneration. In its oxidized form, it plays a role in regeneration of the CNS after injury. It is expressed in the cytoplasm and nucleus in a variety of tissues, including renal glomeruli, endometrial stroma, lymphoid organs, smooth muscle, and fibroblasts as well as in extracellular spaces. References: Camby 2006 Glycobiology 16(11):137R; Gauthier PNAS 2002, 99(20):13014; Cho 1995 J Biol Chem 270 (10):5198; Outenreath J. Neurocytol 21 (11):788; Kadoya 2005 Curr Drug Targets 6(4):375