Extracellular Vesicles in Liquid Biopsies: Potential for Disease Diagnosis

Abstract

Liquid biopsy is conducted through minimally invasive or noninvasive procedures, and the resulting material can be subjected to genomic, proteomic, and lipidomic analyses for early diagnosis of cancers and other diseases. Extracellular vesicles (EVs), one kind of promising tool for liquid biopsy, are nanosized bilayer particles that are secreted by all kinds of cells and that carry cargoes such as lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids, protecting them from enzymatic degradation in the extracellular environment. In this review, we provide a comprehensive introduction to the properties and applications of EVs, including their biogenesis, contents, sample collection, isolation, and applications in diagnostics based on liquid biopsy.

Figure 1

Three main classes of extracellular vesicles: microvesicles, exosomes, and apoptotic bodies. Reprinted from Kim et al. [195].

Figure 2

Schematic depiction of biogenesis of exosomes and microvesicles, two types of extracellular vesicles. Reprinted from Ailawadi et al. [196].

Figure 3

Different methods to isolate extracellular vesicles. Reprinted from Pang et al. [93].

Figure 4

Schematic representation of the analysis of extracellular vesicles in liquid biopsies for clinical medicine.