Swedish scientists: galectin-1 linked to increased risk of type 2 diabetes 
galectin-1 is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Dedicated to a new risk factor for the disease, the article was published in the journal Diabetologia.
Galectin-1 is involved in the regulation of inflammation of fat cells in the body. It has previously been hypothesized that it is involved in the pathophysiological mechanisms associated with the development of type 2 diabetes, thus it has been shown to be associated with elevated insulin levels. Researchers at the Universities of Gothenburg and Lund analyzed blood samples from more than 4,000 participants in the longitudinal study, collected in 1991-1994. Scientists evaluated how galectin-1 levels correlate with the development of type 2 diabetes over the next 18 years and found a positive correlation. At the same time, the researchers note that one should not consider the level of galectin-1 as a predictive tool in predicting diabetes.
At the same time, after analyzing the data of another longitudinal study, experts showed that an increased level of galectin-1 is associated with less kidney damage in overweight diabetics and increased insulin resistance. “My personal theory is that the action of galectin-1 in the kidneys is associated with inflammation, while in adipose tissue it is more associated with metabolic processes,” says one of the researchers, Emmanuel Frick.