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Review
. 2019 Jul 15;8(7):727.
doi: 10.3390/cells8070727.

Overview of Extracellular Vesicles, Their Origin, Composition, Purpose, and Methods for Exosome Isolation and Analysis

Laura M Doyle  1 , Michael Zhuo Wang  2
Affiliations
Review

Overview of Extracellular Vesicles, Their Origin, Composition, Purpose, and Methods for Exosome Isolation and Analysis

Laura M Doyle et al. Cells. .

Abstract

The use of extracellular vesicles, specifically exosomes, as carriers of biomarkers in extracellular spaces has been well demonstrated. Despite their promising potential, the use of exosomes in the clinical setting is restricted due to the lack of standardization in exosome isolation and analysis methods. The purpose of this review is to not only introduce the different types of extracellular vesicles but also to summarize their differences and similarities, and discuss different methods of exosome isolation and analysis currently used. A thorough understanding of the isolation and analysis methods currently being used could lead to some standardization in the field of exosomal research, allowing the use of exosomes in the clinical setting to become a reality.

Keywords: analysis; exosomal marker protein; exosomes; isolation; microvesicles.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Workflow of differential ultracentrifugation for exosome isolation.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Overview of isolation and analysis covered in this review.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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