Characterization of a tandem-repeat galectin-9 from Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) involved in the immune response against bacterial infection.

Galectin-9 is a -galactoside-binding lectin which could modulate a variety of biological functions including recognition, aggregation and clearance of pathogen. In this study, a galectin-9 homologue (OnGal-9) was identified from Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and its expression model and biological effects on bacterial infection were analyzed. The open reading frame of OnGal-9 sequence was 975 bp encoding 324 amino acids. It shares 45%-92% identities with other galectin-9 proteins. The deduced mature peptide of OnGal-9 possesses two conserved carbohydrate recognition domain (CRD) that connected with a linker peptide. Expression analysis indicated that OnGal-9 was distributed in all the tested tissues of healthy tilapia. The OnGal-9 expression was significantly up-regulated in spleen, head kidney, and intestine after challenged by Streptococcus agalactiae. Meanwhile, the recombinant OnGal-9 (rOnGal-9) protein displayed strong binding and agglutination activity toward both Streptococcus agalactiae and Aeromonas hydrophila. Moreover, rOnGal-9 could promote phagocytosis of macrophages. Taken together, the results here indicate that OnGal-9 might be involved in the immune response of Nile tilapia against bacterial infection.