Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

November 05, 2025

06/11/2025

Scripps Research team identifies sugar molecules that trigger placental formation Study reveals how sugar-protein interactions are critical for the placenta during early pregnancy, shedding light on complications like preeclampsia and restricted fetal growth.

November 05, 2025

LA JOLLA, CA During the first weeks of pregnancy, the developing placenta in a mother's womb undergoes a dramatic change. Individual cells merge, forming a continuous barrier that will spend the next nine months ferrying oxygen and nutrients to the growing fetus while keeping the mothers immune system at bay. When this structure fails to form properly, pregnancies are at higher risk of complications, including preeclampsia and restricted fetal growth.

Now, scientists at Scripps Research have identified a key player in the placenta's transformation a molecule called galectin-3 that binds to sugar molecules on specific cell surface proteins, likely holding placental cells tightly together to fuse.

The research, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on November 4, 2025, not only illuminates an important mechanism in placental development but also demonstrates the power of a new technique for mapping the fleeting interactions between proteins and sugars.

Scripps Research scientists developed a method to see where sugar-binding proteins like galectin-3 (purple) were attaching to cells by adding a tagging enzyme (beige). Credit: Scripps Research

Click here for a high-resolution image. We were able to really zoom in and show that one protein and its sugar modification is critical for the biology of the placenta, says senior author Mia Huang, professor of chemistry at Scripps Research. This gives us new fundamental insight into placental biology and eventually could have implications for preventing or treating pregnancy complications.

The placenta is vital to pregnancy, acting as the exchange site where oxygen and nutrients pass from mother to fetus and waste products are removed. But the precise molecular mechanisms that build this critical organ have been unclear. Previous studies had shown correlations between levels of galectin-3 and pregnancy complications, but scientists weren't sure exactly what galectin-3 was doing in the placenta.

Proteins on cell surfaces are often decorated with complex sugar chains modifications that help cells communicate and recognize each other. Galectin-3 is whats known as a glycan-binding protein, meaning it specifically recognizes and attaches to certain patterns of those sugar chains.

Huang's lab turned to a technique they first used in 2020 to map out which sugar-decorated proteins galectin-3 recognizes. Called proximity labeling, the approach acts like molecular spray paint; when galectin-3 binds to a protein, molecules generated by a derivatized galectin-3 irreversibly tag proteins in the area. Then, scientists can work backward from the highlighted parts of the protein to find galectin-3's exact binding site.

In the new study, Huang and colleagues used proximity labeling to map galectin-3 binding in lab-grown cells derived from human placental tissue. Two proteins stood out that galectin-3 consistently attached to: CD9 and integrin beta 1 (ITGB1). When the researchers removed either protein from placental cells, the cells no longer fused during placental development. Then, when they investigated which specific sites on the CD9 protein galectin-3 was binding to, the team discovered an unconventional glycosylation site.

It was really exciting to find such a rare glycosylation sequence, says first author Abigail Reeves, a Scripps Research graduate student in Huang's lab. It really underscores how little we know about this kind of glycosylation. We can't predict with absolute certainty what sugars will decorate a protein and which glycan binding proteins will recognize this modification.

The team also showed that galectin-3 molecules need to cluster together to drive cell fusion. When they engineered galectin-3 to be unable to cluster, the placental cells no longer fused.

We think whats happening is galectin-3 is binding to these CD9 glycoproteins at the cell surface and pulling them all together, creating this giant rigid structure, explains Huang. The process takes about 48 hours, and the membrane clustering ultimately triggers the cells to fuse, the data suggest.

The new study adds to growing evidence that individual interactions between proteins and sugar chains can have large effects on cell function, Huang adds.

The researchers are now working to confirm whether the process occurs in developing human placentas, rather than isolated cell lines. That insight could eventually point toward new ways of preventing pregnancy complications by mediating galectin-3. The team also plans to apply proximity labeling to other types of cells to continue studying the role of protein-sugar interactions in human biology.

In addition to Huang and Reeves, authors of the study, Mapping the placental galectin-3 interactome identifies CD9 and ITGB1 as functional glycoprotein counter-receptors during syncytialization, include Gil-Suk Yang, Sabyasachi Baboo, Jolene Diedrich, Pranali Bedekar, Christopher Bratcher, and John Yates III of Scripps Research; and Shaheen Farhadi, Arun Wanchoo, and Gregory Hudalla of University of Florida.

This work was supported by funding from the Burroughs Wellcome Foundation, the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (NSF GRFP, NSF/DGE-2235200), a Skaggs Graduate Fellowship from the Schimmel Family Foundation, the National Institutes of Health (R35GM142462, UM1AI144462, R01/R56AI113867) and the Conrad Prebys Foundation Research Heroes Program.

Chemistry Huang, Mia
LINK: https://www.scripps.edu/news-and-events/press-room/2025/20251105-huang...
See more stories from scripps

North America Stories

12/03/2026

Boston Conservatory to Timothe Chalamet: We Care About Ballet and Opera

Boston Conservatory to Timoth e Chalamet: We Care About Ballet and Opera Boston Conservatory at Berklee students and faculty respond to the actors recent comm...

11/03/2026

Calrec To Unlock Hybrid Workflows At 2026 NAB Show

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/03/2026

Matrox Video Enables the Next Era of Software-Defined Med...

Matrox Video will showcase its vision for the future of live production at NAB 2026 in Las Vegas, April 19-22, highlighting how broadcasters and media organizat...

11/03/2026

GlobalM Showcases Distributed Video Gateway Architecture...

Geneva-based technology company, GlobalM SA, is presenting its GMX Distributed Video Gateway, a software-defined IP media transport platform designed to replace...

11/03/2026

Video is King - 2026 Iconik Media Stats Report Finds Vide...

Backlight (booth #N2829), the company behind Iconik and Wildmoka, which power video workflows for large media and entertainment organizations, has released the ...

11/03/2026

QuickLinks Latest StudioEdge Models to Make North America...

QuickLink, a leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest contribution solutions, presents its latest StudioEdge models at The NAB Show ...

11/03/2026

Telestream Expands Its Cloud Services with the Introducti...

Telestream, a global leader in media workflow technologies, today announced the expansion of Telestream Cloud Services with the introduction of UP, a new cloud-...

11/03/2026

Operative Launches AOS Configuration for Digital-First Mo...

Operative, the preferred advertising management provider for the world's leading media brands, today announced the launch of AOS for digital media, an AI-po...

11/03/2026

Calrec Redefines Broadcast Workflows at NAB 2026

Calrec will be located in Central Hall, on Booth C6907 Choice without compromise The broadcast industry is going through a rapid evolution that s signalling a...

11/03/2026

Worldstream and Cubbit launch sovereign S3 cloud storage...

The new service is hosted and operated entirely in the Netherlands, combining data sovereignty, resilience, scalability, and predictable costs without relying...

11/03/2026

Ease Live powers interactive Premier Padel experiences on...

Ease Live, an Evertz company and leader in interactive graphical overlays, today announced the successful deployment of its platform on Red Bull TV for Premier ...

11/03/2026

Mediagenix Title Management Accelerates Content Monetizat...

Mediagenix, a global leader in smart content solutions to profitably connect the right content to the right audience, is advancing its Semantic Intelligence cap...

11/03/2026

Emergent Launches Fusion- The Interactive Anything Platfo...

Emergent, a leading provider of AI-enhanced media production solutions, today announced the official launch of Fusion, a powerful, no-code application builder d...

11/03/2026

Techex Names Matt McKee as Senior Director of Sales, Americas

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/03/2026

IAB Tech Lab Announces Content Monetization Protocol for AI LLMs

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/03/2026

Mondae Hott Joins Kokusai Denki as Northeast Sales Manager

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/03/2026

Gray Media to Air Cincinnati Reds' Games on WXIX FOX19

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/03/2026

Shure Audio Solutions Deliver Super Bowl Win

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/03/2026

UK's First Live Broadcast Using New n40 Private 5G Spectrum

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/03/2026

Utah Scientific Expands Technology Partner Program With I...

Utah Scientific today announced the expansion of its Technology Partner Program with the addition of Audinate, Bitfocus, and Skaarhoj, three industry leaders wh...

11/03/2026

DigitalGlue Ends the Post Production Tax creativespace In...

DigitalGlue, creator of the creative.space on-premise managed storage platform, today revealed plans to launch creative.space Intelligence (CSI) at NAB 2026 (Bo...

11/03/2026

Maxon and Tencent Cloud Partner to Integrate HY 3D into C...

Maxon, maker of powerful, approachable software solutions for creators working in 2D and 3D design, motion graphics, visual effects, gaming, and more, has annou...

11/03/2026

NUGEN Audio Halo Vision Plug In Serves as Spatial Compass...

Composer and Re-recording Mixer Michael Phillips Keeley has built his career around immersive storytelling. Working from his Dolby Atmos-equipped studio, Sound ...

11/03/2026

YES selects Synamedia Iris to power advanced advertising

Leading video software provider Synamedia today announced that YES, the pay-TV subsidiary of the telco Bezeq (TASE: BEZQ), has selected Synamedia Iris to delive...

11/03/2026

Cost Savings Scalability and Smarter Monetization Viacces...

As media companies face increasing cost pressures and operational complexity, at the 2026 NAB Show in Las Vegas, Viaccess-Orca (VO), a global leader in OTT / TV...

11/03/2026

Digital Alert Systems Unveils Version 6 Software for DASD...

Digital Alert Systems, a global leader in emergency communications solutions for media providers, today announced the release of Version 6 software for its DASD...

11/03/2026

Foundry releases Nuke 17.0

Foundry releases Nuke 17.0 Brie Clayton March 1, 2026 0 Comments Native Gaussian Splat support, new 3D system based on USD, expanded machine learning ca...

11/03/2026

Preserving UNESCO World Heritage with URSA Cine Immersive

Preserving UNESCO World Heritage with URSA Cine Immersive Brie Clayton March 1, 2026 0 Comments The Explorers turned to France's cultural landmark...

11/03/2026

I Clicked This By Accident And It Made After Effects SO Much Faster

I Clicked This By Accident And It Made After Effects SO Much Faster Graham Quince March 1, 2026 0 Comments Discover how Region of Interest in Adobe A...

11/03/2026

Cine Gear Connect Brings a Focused All-Day Experience to Industry City, NY

Cine Gear Connect Brings a Focused All-Day Experience to Industry City, NY Brie Clayton March 4, 2026 0 Comments Registration is now open for Cine Gea...

11/03/2026

La Vorgine Edited and Finished with DaVinci Resolve Studio

La Vor gine Edited and Finished with DaVinci Resolve Studio Brie Clayton March 4, 2026 0 Comments One of Colombia's most ambitious projects goes g...

11/03/2026

SoundMarket Launches 18,000+ Tracks of Real Music by Award-Winning Composers for Editors and Post Professionals

SoundMarket Launches 18,000 Tracks of Real Music by Award-Winning Composers for...

11/03/2026

Capta Center Supports NOVO19 Remote Production with Blackmagic Design

Capta Center Supports NOVO19 Remote Production with Blackmagic Design Brie Clayton March 5, 2026 0 Comments The facility provides production and playo...

11/03/2026

DigitalGlue Ends the Post-Production Tax: creative.space Intelligence (CSI) Unifies On-Premise Storage with Forensic AI at NAB 2026

DigitalGlue Ends the Post-Production Tax: creative.space Intelligence (CSI) Unif...

11/03/2026

Kochi Sun Sun Uses Blackmagic Replay for High School Volleyball Finals

Kochi Sun Sun Uses Blackmagic Replay for High School Volleyball Finals Brie Clayton March 9, 2026 0 Comments Versatile Blackmagic Replay system proves...

11/03/2026

Richard Bona Joins Berklee for Signature Series Concert

Richard Bona Joins Berklee for Signature Series Concert The Grammy-winning Cameroonian bassist and vocalist collaborates with students and faculty in a progra...

11/03/2026

New NVIDIA Nemotron 3 Super Delivers 5x Higher Throughput for Agentic AI

Launched today, NVIDIA Nemotron 3 Super is a 120 billion parameter open model with 12 billion active parameters designed to run complex agentic AI systems at sc...

11/03/2026

March 10, 2026

Scripps Research scientists awarded nearly $5 million by NIH to investigate cancer growth Researchers will investigate how a common dietary nutrient may control...

10/03/2026

Harvey Arnold, Bert Goldman to Be Honored at the 2026 NAB Show

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/03/2026

Senators Urge FCC to Preserve Citizens Broadband Radio Service

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/03/2026

SCTE TechExpo26 Issues Call for Content, Technical Papers

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/03/2026

Zefr Receives MRC Accreditation

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/03/2026

Study: Overloaded Sports Fans Fed Up with Fragmented Viewing Options

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/03/2026

NVIDIA and ComfyUI Streamline Local AI Video Generation for Game Developers and Creators at GDC

Game developers and artists are building cinematic worlds and iconic characters ...

10/03/2026

NVIDIA Virtualizes Game Development With RTX PRO Server

Game development teams are working across larger worlds, more complex pipelines and more distributed teams than ever. At the same time, many studios still rely ...

10/03/2026

As Open Models Spark AI Boom, NVIDIA Jetson Brings It to Life at the Edge

The Cat 306 CR mini-excavator weighs just under eight tons and fits inside a standard shipping container. It's the machine a contractor rents when the job s...

10/03/2026

NVIDIA and Thinking Machines Lab Announce Long-Term Gigawatt-Scale Strategic Partnership

NVIDIA and Thinking Machines Lab announced today a multiyear strategic partnersh...

09/03/2026

Foos Gone Wild, Combate Global Launch New Televised MMA Fight Series

Foos Gone Wild and Combate Global have teamed up to create a twist on combat sports competition, announcing the launch of a special amateur Mixed Martial Arts (...

09/03/2026

Harmonic Accelerates Streaming and Broadcast Transformations

At the 2026 NAB Show, Harmonic will introduce significant enhancements to its video appliances and SaaS solutions, highlighted by a next-generation media server...

09/03/2026

ESPN Delivers Most-Watched MLB Spring Training Game in 10 years with Team USA vs. San Francisco Giants

ESPN's March 3 spring training matchup between Team USA and the San Francisc...