Special Issue – Extracellular Vesicles: The Biology and Therapeutic Applications

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are phospholipid bilayer limited particles located in the extracellular space, without self-reproducibility. They represent a heterogeneous population in size and origin and play an important role in physiology and pathology. The exponentially increased number of published studies in the last decade highlights the importance of the field; however, many EV-related questions remain unanswered, while the exact role of different EV populations in cell-to-cell communication is still not completely understood. The release mechanism, uptake, and intracellular fate of EVs are not fully understood. High-throughput methods such as proteomics, transcriptomics, lipidomics, glycomics, and glycoproteomics often lead to new EV-related biomarkers and may suggest new targets in diagnostics. EV-based therapies are a new and dynamically increasing part of biomedical sciences.

This Special Issue aims to gather manuscripts on a basic understanding of EV-related biological processes, new technologies supporting EV studies, biomarker research, and therapeutic applications.

Liu, A.; Hefley, B.; Escandon, P.; Nicholas, S.; Karamichos, D. Salivary Exosomes in Health and Disease: Future Prospects in the Eye. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(7), 6363; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24076363. [article]

Aguilera, C.; Velásquez, A.; Gutierrez-Reinoso, M.; Wong, Y.; Melo-Baez, B.; Cabezas, J.; Caamaño, D.; Navarrete, F.; Rojas, D.; Riadi, G.; Castro, F.; Rodriguez-Alvarez, L. Extracellular Vesicles Secreted by Pre-Hatching Bovine Embryos Produced In Vitro and In Vivo Alter the Expression of IFNtau-Stimulated Genes in Bovine Endometrial Cells. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(8), 7438; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24087438. [article]

Da Fonseca Ferreira, A.; Wei, J.; Zhang, L.; Macon, C.; Degnan, B.; Jayaweera, D.; Hare, J.; Kolber, M.; Bellio, M.; Khan, A.; Pan, Y.; Dykxhoorn, D.; Wang, L.; Dong, C. HIV Promotes Atherosclerosis via Circulating Extracellular Vesicle MicroRNAs. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(8), 7567; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24087567. [article]

Samarpita, S.; Li, X. Leveraging Exosomes as the Next-Generation Bio-Shuttles: The Next Biggest Approach against Th17 Cell Catastrophe. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(8), 7647; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24087647. [article]

Shulman, I.; Ageeva, T.; Kostennikov, A.; Ogurcov, S.; Tazetdinova, L.; Kabdesh, I.; Rogozhin, A.; Ganiev, I.; Rizvanov, A.; Mukhamedshina, Y. Intrathecal Injection of Autologous Mesenchymal Stem-Cell-Derived Extracellular Vesicles in Spinal Cord Injury: A Feasibility Study in Pigs. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(9), 8240; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24098240. [article]

Kim, R.; Kim, J. Engineered Extracellular Vesicles with Compound-Induced Cargo Delivery to Solid Tumors. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(11), 9368; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24119368. [article]

Solé, C.; Royo, M.; Sandoval, S.; Moliné, T.; Cortés-Hernández, J. Small-Extracellular-Vesicle-Derived miRNA Profile Identifies miR-483-3p and miR-326 as Regulators in the Pathogenesis of Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS). Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(14), 11607; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241411607. [article]

Kulus, J.; Kranc, W.; Kulus, M.; Bukowska, D.; Piotrowska-Kempisty, H.; Mozdziak, P.; Kempisty, B.; Antosik, P. New Gene Markers of Exosomal Regulation Are Involved in Porcine Granulosa Cell Adhesion, Migration, and Proliferation. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(14), 11873; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241411873. [article]

Martínez-Greene, J.; Gómez-Chavarín, M.; Ramos-Godínez, M.; Martínez-Martínez, E. Isolation of Hepatic and Adipose-Tissue-Derived Extracellular Vesicles Using Density Gradient Separation and Size Exclusion Chromatography. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(16), 12704; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241612704. [article]

Skelton, A.; Cohen, D.; Boyan, B.; Schwartz, Z. Osteoblast-Derived Matrix Vesicles Exhibit Exosomal Traits and a Unique Subset of microRNA: Their Caveolae-Dependent Endocytosis Results in Reduced Osteogenic Differentiation. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(16), 12770; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241612770. [article]

Garcia, N.; Mellergaard, M.; Gonzalez-King, H.; Salomon, C.; Handberg, A. Comprehensive Strategy for Identifying Extracellular Vesicle Surface Proteins as Biomarkers for Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(17), 13326; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241713326. [article]

Chiba, M.; Miyata, K.; Okawa, H.; Tanaka, Y.; Ueda, K.; Seimiya, H.; Takahashi, A. YBX1 Regulates Satellite II RNA Loading into Small Extracellular Vesicles and Promotes the Senescent Phenotype. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(22), 16399; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms242216399. [article]