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Review
. 2021 Mar 11;26(6):1544.
doi: 10.3390/molecules26061544.

Factors Affecting Extracellular Vesicles Based Drug Delivery Systems

Isha Gaurav  1 , Abhimanyu Thakur  2 , Ashok Iyaswamy  1   3 , Xuehan Wang  1 , Xiaoyu Chen  1 , Zhijun Yang  1   4
Affiliations
Review

Factors Affecting Extracellular Vesicles Based Drug Delivery Systems

Isha Gaurav et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) play major roles in intracellular communication and participate in several biological functions in both normal and pathological conditions. Surface modification of EVs via various ligands, such as proteins, peptides, or aptamers, offers great potential as a means to achieve targeted delivery of therapeutic cargo, i.e., in drug delivery systems (DDS). This review summarizes recent studies pertaining to the development of EV-based DDS and its advantages compared to conventional nano drug delivery systems (NDDS). First, we compare liposomes and exosomes in terms of their distinct benefits in DDS. Second, we analyze what to consider for achieving better isolation, yield, and characterization of EVs for DDS. Third, we summarize different methods for the modification of surface of EVs, followed by discussion about different origins of EVs and their role in developing DDS. Next, several major methods for encapsulating therapeutic cargos in EVs have been summarized. Finally, we discuss key challenges and pose important open questions which warrant further investigation to develop more effective EV-based DDS.

Keywords: drug delivery systems; exosomes; extracellular vesicles; targeted delivery.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest with regard to publication of this work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Representative structure of an exosome and its composition.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Biogenesis pathways followed by different types of EVs, namely exosomes, MVs, and ABs. (A) MVBs fuse with lysosomes and degrade or fuse with the plasma membrane and form exosomes which are released from cell into extracellular space. (B) MVs are a set of EVs with size in the range of 100–1000 nm; they are formed and released by budding off cell membrane. (C) ABs are in the size range of 50–5000 nm, and are released from cells undergoing apoptosis.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Comparative schematic illustration of exosomes and liposomes.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Different sources of EVs for developing EV-based DDS, their advantages, and disadvantages.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Different methods for loading therapeutic cargos in EVs for developing EV-based delivery systems.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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