Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
John Wang is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. He received his undergraduate degree in chemistry from Dartmouth College (Hanover, New Hampshire) and a Ph.D. degree from The Rockefeller University (New York, New York).
Dr. Wang has had a career-long interest in carbohydrate-binding proteins (lectins). His doctoral thesis was on the covalent and three-dimensional structure of the plant lectin, concanavalin A (Con A). During post-doctoral work in the laboratory of Dr. Gerald Edelman, an analysis of the inhibition by Con A of the mobility of lymphocyte surface receptors suggested that the lateral motion and distribution of cell surface receptors are under the control of a submembranous macromolecular assembly, providing one of the first line of evidence of transmembrane receptor-cytoplasmic interactions.
At Michigan State University, his laboratory isolated the first three members of the galectin family as galactose-specific carbohydrate-binding proteins. They reported the interesting phenomenon of dual localization: galectin-3 (Gal3) turned out to be the macrophage cell surface antigen designated as Mac-2 but convincing evidence was also documented that it can found in the nucleus of cells as well. Immunolocalization and cell fractionation experiments revealed Gal3 as a component of ribonucleoprotein complexes with densities (on sedimentation on Cs2SO4 density gradients) corresponding to those reported for hnRNP and snRNP. In collaboration with Dr. Ron Patterson, a colleague on the Michigan State faculty, they showed that Gal3 and another family member, galectin-1 (Gal1), were required but redundant factors for nuclear pre-mRNA splicing in a cell-free assay. Gal3 shuttles between the nucleus and cytoplasm and both a nuclear localization signal, as well as a nuclear export signal, were identified on the polypeptide.
Association of galectin-1 and galectin-3 with Gemin4 in complexes containing the SMN protein.
Nucleic acids research Sep, 2001 | Pubmed ID: 11522829
Shuttling of galectin-3 between the nucleus and cytoplasm.
Glycobiology May, 2002 | Pubmed ID: 12070075
Understanding the biochemical activities of galectin-1 and galectin-3 in the nucleus.
Glycoconjugate journal , 2002 | Pubmed ID: 14758073
Nucleocytoplasmic lectins.
Biochimica et biophysica acta Jul, 2004 | Pubmed ID: 15238251
Transport of galectin-3 between the nucleus and cytoplasm. II. Identification of the signal for nuclear export.
Glycobiology Jul, 2006 | Pubmed ID: 16473834
Transport of galectin-3 between the nucleus and cytoplasm. I. Conditions and signals for nuclear import.
Glycobiology Jul, 2006 | Pubmed ID: 16473835
Lateral diffusion of phospholipids in the plasma membrane of soybean protoplasts: Evidence for membrane lipid domains.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Jan, 1986 | Pubmed ID: 16593643
Immunoprecipitation of spliceosomal RNAs by antisera to galectin-1 and galectin-3.
Nucleic acids research , 2006 | Pubmed ID: 16998182
Distinct effects on splicing of two monoclonal antibodies directed against the amino-terminal domain of galectin-3.
Archives of biochemistry and biophysics Jul, 2008 | Pubmed ID: 18455493
Dissociation of the carbohydrate-binding and splicing activities of galectin-1.
Archives of biochemistry and biophysics Oct, 2008 | Pubmed ID: 18662664
A mechanism for incorporation of galectin-3 into the spliceosome through its association with U1 snRNP.
Biochemistry Aug, 2009 | Pubmed ID: 19603745
Dynamics of galectin-3 in the nucleus and cytoplasm.
Biochimica et biophysica acta Feb, 2010 | Pubmed ID: 19616076
SR proteins and galectins: what's in a name?
Glycobiology Oct, 2010 | Pubmed ID: 20574110
Examination of the role of galectins in pre-mRNA splicing.
Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) , 2015 | Pubmed ID: 25253157
A 10S galectin-3-U1 snRNP complex assembles into active spliceosomes.
Nucleic acids research 07, 2016 | Pubmed ID: 27105840
Identification of Lectins from Metastatic Cancer Cells through Magnetic Glyconanoparticles.
Israel journal of chemistry Mar, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 27110035
ABOUT JoVE
Copyright © 2024 MyJoVE Corporation. All rights reserved