Bernardi Simona, Balbi Carolina
Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, ASST Spedali Civili, 25123 Brescia, Italy.
Centro di Ricerca Emato-Oncologica AIL (CREA), ASST Spedali Civili, 25123 Brescia, Italy.
Biology (Basel). 2020 Aug 31;9(9):258. doi: 10.3390/biology9090258.
Intercellular communication is an essential hallmark of multicellular organisms and can be mediated through direct cell-cell contact or transfer of secreted molecules. In the last two decades, a third mechanism for intercellular communication has emerged that involves intercellular transfer of extracellular vesicles (EVs). EVs are membranous vesicles of 30-5000 nm in size. Based on their dimension and biogenesis, EVs can be divided into different categories, such as microvesicles, apoptotic bodies, ectosomes, and exosomes. It has already been demonstrated that protein changes, expressed on the surfaces or in the content of these vesicles, may reflect the status of producing cells. For this reason, EVs, and exosomes in particular, are considered ideal biomarkers in several types of disease-from cancer diagnosis to heart rejection. This aspect opens different opportunities in EVs clinical application, considering the importance given to liquid biopsy in the recent years. Furthermore, extracellular vesicles can be natural or engineered carriers of cytoprotective or cytotoxic factors and applied, as a therapeutic tool, from regenerative medicine to target cancer therapy. This is of pivotal importance in the so called "era of the 4P medicine". This Editorial focuses on recent findings pertaining to EVs in different medical areas, from biomarkers to therapeutic applications.
细胞间通讯是多细胞生物的一个基本特征,可通过细胞间直接接触或分泌分子的传递来介导。在过去二十年中,出现了一种细胞间通讯的新机制,即细胞外囊泡(EVs)的细胞间转移。EVs是大小为30 - 5000纳米的膜性囊泡。根据其大小和生物发生过程,EVs可分为不同类别,如微泡、凋亡小体、外泌体等。已经证实,这些囊泡表面或内容物中表达的蛋白质变化可能反映产生细胞的状态。因此,EVs,尤其是外泌体,在从癌症诊断到心脏排斥反应等多种疾病中被视为理想的生物标志物。考虑到近年来对液体活检的重视,这一特性为EVs的临床应用开辟了不同的机会。此外,细胞外囊泡可以是细胞保护或细胞毒性因子的天然或工程载体,并作为一种治疗工具应用于从再生医学到靶向癌症治疗等领域。这在所谓的“4P医学时代”至关重要。本社论重点关注不同医学领域中与EVs相关的最新研究成果,从生物标志物到治疗应用。