Secció de Bioquímica i Biología Molecular, Departament de Bioquímica i Fisiologia, Facultat de Farmàcia i Ciències de l'Alimentació, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona, Spain.
Institut de Biomedicina de la Universitat de Barcelona (IBUB), Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu (IRSJD), 08950 Barcelona, Spain.
Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Feb 23;22(4):2213. doi: 10.3390/ijms22042213.
Communication between cells is crucial to preserve body homeostasis and health. Tightly controlled intercellular dialog is particularly relevant in the gut, where cells of the intestinal mucosa are constantly exposed to millions of microbes that have great impact on intestinal homeostasis by controlling barrier and immune functions. Recent knowledge involves extracellular vesicles (EVs) as mediators of such communication by transferring messenger bioactive molecules including proteins, lipids, and miRNAs between cells and tissues. The specific functions of EVs principally depend on the internal cargo, which upon delivery to target cells trigger signal events that modulate cellular functions. The vesicular cargo is greatly influenced by genetic, pathological, and environmental factors. This finding provides the basis for investigating potential clinical applications of EVs as therapeutic targets or diagnostic biomarkers. Here, we review current knowledge on the biogenesis and cargo composition of EVs in general terms. We then focus the attention to EVs released by cells of the intestinal mucosa and their impact on intestinal homeostasis in health and disease. We specifically highlight their role on epithelial barrier integrity, wound healing of epithelial cells, immunity, and microbiota shaping. Microbiota-derived EVs are not reviewed here.
细胞间的通讯对于维持体内平衡和健康至关重要。细胞间的紧密控制对话在肠道中尤为重要，因为肠道黏膜细胞不断暴露于数以百万计的微生物中，这些微生物通过控制屏障和免疫功能对肠道内环境产生巨大影响。最近的知识涉及细胞外囊泡（EVs）作为这种通讯的介质，通过将包括蛋白质、脂质和 miRNAs 在内的信使生物活性分子在细胞和组织之间传递。EVs 的特定功能主要取决于内部货物，这些货物在递送到靶细胞后触发信号事件，从而调节细胞功能。囊泡货物受遗传、病理和环境因素的影响很大。这一发现为研究 EVs 作为治疗靶点或诊断生物标志物的潜在临床应用提供了基础。在这里，我们综述了 EVs 的生物发生和货物组成的一般知识。然后，我们将注意力集中在肠道黏膜细胞释放的 EVs 及其在健康和疾病状态下对肠道内环境的影响上。我们特别强调了它们在上皮屏障完整性、上皮细胞的伤口愈合、免疫和微生物群形成方面的作用。本文不讨论微生物群衍生的 EVs。
