Exosomes are 30-120nm long endocytic membrane-derived
vesicles, which are secreted by various types of cells and stably present in
body fluids, such as plasma, urine, saliva and breast milk. Exosomes
participate in intercellular communication. Recently accumulative studies have
suggested that exosomes may serve as novel biomarkers for disease diagnosis
and prognosis. Herein, we reviewed the biological features of exosomes,
technologies for exosome isolation and identification, as well as progress in
exosomal biomarker identification, highlighting the relevance of exosome to
human diseases and significance and great potential in translational medicine.