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Review
. 2023 Nov;601(22):4895-4905.
doi: 10.1113/JP282047. Epub 2023 Oct 5.

Message in a bubble: the translational potential of extracellular vesicles

H Alqurashi  1   2 , M Alsharief  1 , M L Perciato  1 , B Raven  1   3 , K Ren  1 , D W Lambert  1   3   4
Affiliations
Review

Message in a bubble: the translational potential of extracellular vesicles

H Alqurashi et al. J Physiol. 2023 Nov.

Abstract

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are small, membrane-enclosed vesicles released by cells into the extracellular milieu. They are found in all body fluids and contain a variety of functional cargo including DNA, RNA, proteins, glycoproteins and lipids, able to provoke phenotypic responses in cells, both locally and at distant sites. They are implicated in a wide array of physiological and pathological processes and hence have attracted considerable attention in recent years as potential therapeutic targets, drug delivery vehicles and biomarkers of disease. In this review we summarise the major functions of EVs in health and disease and discuss their translational potential, highlighting opportunities of - and challenges to - capitalising on our rapidly increasing understanding of EV biology for patient benefit.

Keywords: biomarkers; clinical translation; extracellular vesicles; therapeutics.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Mechanisms of biogenesis of commonly described extracellular vesicles
Figure created with BioRender.com.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Clinical applications of EVs as therapeutics and biomarkers
Figure created with BioRender.com.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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