Nucleic acids and proteins carried by exosomes of different origins as potential biomarkers for gynecologic cancers

Exosomes are extracellular vesicles with a diameter of 30-150 nm that function in mediating intercellular communication and intercellular material exchange. The liposomal membrane of exosomes protects the cargo carried by exosomes from degradation, and assists in transporting cargo to recipient cells to regulate a variety of physiological and pathological processes. The incidence of gynecologic cancers is increasing annually, which is incredibly harmful to the lives and health of women because such cancers are challenging to detect at the early stage. Recently, exosomes have emerged as novel biomarkers for diagnosing and predicting the development of gynecologic cancers. In particular, noncoding RNAs (miRNAs, lncRNAs and circRNAs) carried by exosomes have been extensively investigated in gynecologic cancers. Researchers from the Wenzhou Medical University discuss the potential roles of exosomes of different origins in ovarian cancer, cervical cancer and endometrial cancer, which will help to determine the molecular mechanism of carcinogenesis.