LGALS3 and diabetes mellitus: Galectin-3 (Gal-3), a potential biomarker of cardiovascular inflammation, promotes the secretion of other proinflammatory factors, such as interleukin-6 (IL-6), in a dose-dependent manner by activating macrophages and is significantly and rapidly expressed in a variety of diseases, including cancer, diabetes, and heart disease (7, 8).