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Review
. 2024 Jun 18;22(1):340.
doi: 10.1186/s12951-024-02611-4.

Exosomes as drug delivery systems in glioma immunotherapy

Xinqing Hao  1   2 , Shiming Wang  3 , Liang Wang  1   2 , Jiaqi Li  4 , Ying Li  5   6 , Jing Liu  7   8
Affiliations
Review

Exosomes as drug delivery systems in glioma immunotherapy

Xinqing Hao et al. J Nanobiotechnology. .

Abstract

Recently, the significant benefits of cancer immunotherapy for most cancers have been demonstrated in clinical and preclinical studies. However, the efficacy of these immunotherapies for gliomas is limited, owing to restricted drug delivery and insufficient immune activation. As drug carriers, exosomes offer the advantages of low toxicity, good biocompatibility, and intrinsic cell targeting, which could enhance glioma immunotherapy efficacy. However, a review of exosome-based drug delivery systems for glioma immunotherapy has not been presented. This review introduces the current problems in glioma immunotherapy and the role of exosomes in addressing these issues. Meanwhile, preparation and application strategies of exosome-based drug delivery systems for glioma immunotherapy are discussed, especially for enhancing immunogenicity and reversing the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Finally, we briefly describe the challenges of exosome-based drug delivery systems in clinical translation. We anticipate that this review will guide the use of exosomes as drug carriers for glioma immunotherapy.

Keywords: Drug delivery systems; Exosomes; Glioma; Immunotherapy.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Current problems in glioma immunotherapy (By Figdraw). a Blood-brain barrier prevents the entry of therapeutic molecules. b Low immunogenicity of gliomas restricts immune response initiation. c Immunosuppressive microenvironment inhibits T cell activity
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Exosome biogenesis, characteristics, and mechanism of crossing the BBB (By Figdraw). a Exosome biogenesis and characteristics. (i) Exosome biogenesis; (ii) Exosome characteristics. b Mechanism of exosome crossing the BBB. (i) Receptor-mediated transcytosis; (ii) Lipid rafts or nonspecific exosome-endothelial cell interactions; (iii) Macropinocytosis
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Immunomodulatory capability of tumor cell and immune cell-derived exosomes (By Figdraw)
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Exosome-based immunotherapy strategies for gliomas (By Figdraw). a Improvement of tumor low immunogenicity. (i) Exosomes precisely deliver chemotherapeutic drugs to promote antigen release and trigger immunogenic cell death; (ii) Exosomes from tumor and immune cells as cancer vaccines to enhance antigen expression and presentation. b Improvement of the immunosuppressive microenvironment, including reprogramming TAMs, targeting MDSCs/Tregs, and improving TME physicochemical properties
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