The galectins have been implicated in many essential functions including development, differentiation, cell-cell adhesion, cell-matrix interaction, growth regulation, apoptosis, and RNA splicing.

[8] The physiological consequences of mTOR inhibition following lysosomal membrane damage[8] encompass autophagy and metabolic switching.

Circulating galectin levels in the serum of healthy individuals typically range between 0.1 and 166.3 ng/mL, with a median concentration of approximately 6 ng/mL.

It has been shown that the binding of galectin-8 to the damaged vacuole can recruit autophagy adaptors such as NDP52 leading to the formation of an autophagosome and subsequent bacterial destruction.

[12] As knockout experiments of galectin-8 leads to more successful cytosolic replication by S. enterica serovar Typhimurium, it is thought that galectin-8 acts as a danger receptor in defence against intracellular pathogens.