scholarly journals Diagnostic and Therapeutic Potential of Extracellular Vesicles

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 153303382110412
Author(s):  
Sai Priyanka Kodam ◽  
Mujib Ullah
Keyword(s):  
Extracellular Vesicles ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
Drug Carriers ◽  
Systemic Circulation ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
The Body ◽  
Biological Molecules ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Target Organs ◽  
And Storage

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are naturally phospholipid enclosed nanovesicles released by many cells in the body. They are stable in circulation, have low immunogenicity, and act as carriers for functionally active biological molecules. They interact with target organs and bind to the receptors. Their target specificity is important to use EVs as noninvasive diagnostic and prognostic tools. EVs play a vital role in normal physiology and cellular communication. They are known to protect their cargo from degradation, which makes them important drug carriers for targeted drug delivery. Using EVs with markers and tracking their path in systemic circulation can be revolutionary in using them as diagnostic tools. We will discuss the scope of this in this paper. Although there are limitations in EVs isolation and storage, their high biocompatibility will fuel more innovations to overcome these challenges.

scholarly journals Extracellular Vesicles as Natural, Safe and Efficient Drug Delivery Systems

Pharmaceutics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 557 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federico Villa ◽  
Rodolfo Quarto ◽  
Roberta Tasso
Keyword(s):  
Extracellular Vesicles ◽  
Scientific Community ◽  
Drug Delivery Systems ◽  
Physiological Role ◽  
Quality Criteria ◽  
Drug Carriers ◽  
Cellular Communication ◽  
Biological Molecules ◽  
Therapeutic Molecules ◽  
Stringent Quality

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are particles naturally released from cells, delimited by a lipid bilayer, carrying functionally active biological molecules. In addition to their physiological role in cellular communication, the interest of the scientific community has recently turned to the use of EVs as vehicles for delivering therapeutic molecules. Several attempts are being made to ameliorate drug encapsulation and targeting, but these efforts are thwarted if the starting material does not meet stringent quality criteria. Here, we take a step back to the sources and isolation procedures that could guarantee significant improvements in the purification of EVs to be used as drug carriers, highlighting the advantages and shortcomings of each approach.

Echocardiography, Angio-TC and Angiography in Assessing the Feasibility of Separation of Thoracopagus Twins

1994 ◽  
Vol 43 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 125-125
Author(s):  
P. Gugliantini ◽  
G. Santoro ◽  
R. Formigari ◽  
B. Marino
Keyword(s):  
Aortic Stenosis ◽  
Pulmonary Atresia ◽  
Systemic Circulation ◽  
Conjoined Twins ◽  
The Body ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Rare Malformation ◽  
Cardiac Fusion ◽  
Surgical Separation ◽  
Conventional Radiology

Thoraco-abdominal fusion of twins is a rare malformation (1/50.000 live births) known as “Thoracopagus sternopagus tetrabrachius”. Most of the therapeutic problems encountered concern the degree of cardiac and hepatic fusion involved and this may be assessed by performing echocardiography, angio-TC and angiocardiography together with the conventional radiology techniques.Case report. Two month-old ‘conjoined twins’ (Alphonsine Al, and Stephany St) with thoraco-abdominal fusion were admitted to our hospital. Gastrointestinal tract contrastography failed to show any comunication between the twins. Echocardiography showed cardiac fusion at atrial and ventricular level. Al showed a well-formed heart with a small atrial septal defect and mild aortic stenosis, while St showed a common atrium, fused with the left atrium of Al, connected by a common atrioventricular valve with a discordant single ventricle of left type (ventricular L-loop). No evidence of pulmonary trunk was found. Computed tomography and angio-TC confirmed cardiac and hepatic fusion showing a common arterial hepatic circulation. Cardiac catheterization and angiocardiography of Al confirmed a mild aortic stenosis and showed a severe aortic coarctation with the lower part of the body served by artero-arterial anastomoses of St, whose ventriculography showed pulmonary atresia and pulmonary hypovascularity. Arterial oxygenation of both circulations was provided by Al via atrial and ventricular fusion, while peripheral perfusion was mainly due to the systemic circulation of St. In conclusion, echocardiography, angio-TC, and angiography integrate the conventional radiographic techniques and are useful diagnostic tools to clarify the anatomy and/or physiology of thoracopagus twins, and to evaluate the feasibility of their surgical separation.

scholarly journals Chronic Sulfasalazine Treatment in Mice Induces System xc− - Independent Adverse Effects

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lise Verbruggen ◽  
Lindsay Sprimont ◽  
Eduard Bentea ◽  
Pauline Janssen ◽  
Azzedine Gharib ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Adverse Effects ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Chronic Administration ◽  
Systemic Circulation ◽  
The Body ◽  
Ample Evidence ◽  
Anti Inflammatory ◽  
First Time

Despite ample evidence for the therapeutic potential of inhibition of the cystine/glutamate antiporter system xc− in neurological disorders and in cancer, none of the proposed inhibitors is selective. In this context, a lot of research has been performed using the EMA- and FDA-approved drug sulfasalazine (SAS). Even though this molecule is already on the market for decades as an anti-inflammatory drug, serious side effects due to its use have been reported. Whereas for the treatment of the main indications, SAS needs to be cleaved in the intestine into the anti-inflammatory compound mesalazine, it needs to reach the systemic circulation in its intact form to allow inhibition of system xc−. The higher plasma levels of intact SAS (or its metabolites) might induce adverse effects, independent of its action on system xc−. Some of these effects have however been attributed to system xc− inhibition, calling into question the safety of targeting system xc−. In this study we chronically treated system xc− - deficient mice and their wildtype littermates with two different doses of SAS (160 mg/kg twice daily or 320 mg/kg once daily, i.p.) and studied some of the adverse effects that were previously reported. SAS had a negative impact on the survival rate, the body weight, the thermoregulation and/or stress reaction of mice of both genotypes, and thus independent of its inhibitory action on system xc−. While SAS decreased the total distance travelled in the open-field test the first time the mice encountered the test, it did not influence this parameter on the long-term and it did not induce other behavioral changes such as anxiety- or depressive-like behavior. Finally, no major histological abnormalities were observed in the spinal cord. To conclude, we were unable to identify any undesirable system xc−-dependent effect of chronic administration of SAS.

scholarly journals The Therapeutic Potential of MicroRNAs in Atrial Fibrillation

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Xiaona Xu ◽  
Zhiqiang Zhao ◽  
Guangping Li
Keyword(s):  
Atrial Fibrillation ◽  
Messenger Rna ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
Expression Profiles ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
The Body ◽  
Small Noncoding Rnas ◽  
Normative Development ◽  
Mirna Expression Profiles ◽  
New Perspective

One of the most globally prevalent supraventricular arrhythmias is atrial fibrillation (AF). Knowledge of the structures and functions of messenger RNA (mRNA) has recently increased. It is no longer viewed as solely an intermediate molecule between DNA and proteins but has come to be seen as a dynamic and modifiable gene regulator. This new perspective on mRNA has led to rising interest in it and its presence in research into new therapeutic schemes. This paper, therefore, focuses on microRNAs (miRNAs), which are small noncoding RNAs that regulate posttranscriptional gene expression and play a vital role in the physiology and normative development of cardiovascular systems. This means they play an equally vital role in the development and progression of cardiovascular diseases. In recent years, multiple studies have pinpointed particular miRNA expression profiles as being associated with varying histological features of AF. These studies have been carried out in both animal models and AF patients. The emergence of miRNAs as biomarkers and their therapeutic potential in AF patients will be discussed in the body of this paper.

scholarly journals Overview and Update on Methods for Cargo Loading into Extracellular Vesicles

Processes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 356
Author(s):  
Yohan Han ◽  
Timothy W. Jones ◽  
Saugata Dutta ◽  
Yin Zhu ◽  
Xiaoyun Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drug Delivery ◽  
Drug Delivery System ◽  
Extracellular Vesicles ◽  
Delivery System ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
Drug Carriers ◽  
Biological Information ◽  
Therapeutic Drugs ◽  
Loading Methods ◽  
Novel Drug

The enormous library of pharmaceutical compounds presents endless research avenues. However, several factors limit the therapeutic potential of these drugs, such as drug resistance, stability, off-target toxicity, and inadequate delivery to the site of action. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are lipid bilayer-delimited particles and are naturally released from cells. Growing evidence shows that EVs have great potential to serve as effective drug carriers. Since EVs can not only transfer biological information, but also effectively deliver hydrophobic drugs into cells, the application of EVs as a novel drug delivery system has attracted considerable scientific interest. Recently, EVs loaded with siRNA, miRNA, mRNA, CRISPR/Cas9, proteins, or therapeutic drugs show improved delivery efficiency and drug effect. In this review, we summarize the methods used for the cargo loading into EVs, including siRNA, miRNA, mRNA, CRISPR/Cas9, proteins, and therapeutic drugs. Furthermore, we also include the recent advance in engineered EVs for drug delivery. Finally, both advantages and challenges of EVs as a new drug delivery system are discussed. Here, we encourage researchers to further develop convenient and reliable loading methods for the potential clinical applications of EVs as drug carriers in the future.

The circulatory system

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin E. Atkinson
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular System ◽  
Pulmonary Circulation ◽  
Circulatory System ◽  
Systemic Circulation ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
The Body ◽  
Two Systems ◽  
Thin Walled ◽  
Lower Loop ◽  
Muscular Pump

The circulatory system has two interrelated, but distinct parts, the cardiovascular system which circulates blood around the body and the lymphatic system which returns excess fluid from the tissues to the cardiovascular system. The function of the cardiovascular system is to oxygenate blood in the lungs and distribute the oxygenated blood to the tissues of the body. At the same time, carbon dioxide that accumulates as a result of metabolism of oxygen within the tissues is removed from the tissues and transported to the lungs where it is released from the blood and exhaled. The cardiovascular system comprises the heart, a muscular pump, and blood vessels. Arteries convey blood to thin-walled capillaries where gaseous exchange takes place and veins return blood to the heart. The cardiovascular system is often described as two parallel systems; the pulmonary circulation moves blood through the lungs and the systemic circulation circulates blood through the body. Trace the circulation of blood through the two systems in Figure 4.1 by following the arrows from the side of the heart coloured red. It follows a figure-of-eight (8) pattern with the two systems interlinked at the heart, the upper loop representing the pulmonary circulation and the lower loop the systemic circulation. The heart is a muscular pump driving blood at considerable pressure through arteries that get progressively smaller in both circulations until capillaries are reached. Arteries are sometimes dismissed as mere plumbing, but they play a vital role in regulating the blood flow through organs and tissues. Capillary walls are only one cell thick, allowing for the efficient diffusion of gases and small nutrient molecules to and from tissues. Waste gases and metabolites are also returned to the circulatory system through capillaries and these unite to form veins carrying blood under comparatively low pressure back to the heart. The heart comprises two muscular pumps arranged in parallel and beating in unison. As you can see in Figure 4.1, these two pumps are designated as the right and left sides of the heart. Each pump consists of two chambers, a thin-walled atrium that receives blood from one or other circulation and a thick-walled ventricle that ejects blood into the circulations.

scholarly journals Protein nano-cages: Novel carriers for optimized targeted remedy

F1000Research ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 1541 ◽  
Author(s):  
Negar Etehad Roudi ◽  
Neda Saraygord-Afshari ◽  
Maryam Hemmaty
Keyword(s):  
Drug Delivery ◽  
Targeted Delivery ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Drug Carriers ◽  
The Body ◽  
Nano Particles ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Multiple Protein ◽  
Low Toxicity ◽  
Novel Protein

Since 1980, when the idea of drug-delivery was proposed, various drug-carriers have been developed, including DNA, proteins, liposomes and several other polymer cages, consisting of many well established natural and synthetic nano-particles. All these drug-carriers can self-assemble in the body and can be manipulated for safer delivery into target tissues. By definition, nano-scale drug delivery systems encompass any structure (either cage or particle) in the form of solid colloids, which range in size from 10 nm to 100 nm. Today, optimization of these nano drug-vehicles is a topic in many research centers. Researchers are trying to improve the carrier’s solubility and their loading capacity and also wish to increase the half-life of drug delivery cargos in target tissues. Efforts in recent years have led to the introduction of novel protein nano-cages composed of multiple protein subunits, which self-assemble within a superfine and precise format. Science their introduction these promising structure have shown many unique characteristics, including low toxicity, bio-system compatibility, minor immunogenicity, high solubility, and a relatively easy production in large scale. Herein, we review and discuss the recently developed protein nano-carriers that are used as drug cargos for targeted delivery and/or diagnostic tools.

scholarly journals The Hidden Link of Exosomes to Head and Neck Cancer

Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 5802
Author(s):  
Yong Teng ◽  
Lixia Gao ◽  
Reid Loveless ◽  
Juan P. Rodrigo ◽  
Primož Strojan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Overall Survival ◽  
Head And Neck ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
Drug Carriers ◽  
Therapeutic Strategies ◽  
The Body ◽  
Tumor Drug Resistance ◽  
Heterogenous Group ◽  
Significant Interest ◽  
Proliferation And Metastasis

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) represents an aggressive and heterogenous group of cancers whose pathologies remain largely unresolved. Despite recent advances in HNSCC therapeutic strategies, the overall survival of HNSCC patients remains poor and continues to prompt efforts to develop more effective therapies. Exosomes are a subtype of extracellular vesicles secreted by a variety of cells that have begun to spark significant interest in their roles in cancer. As membranous vesicles, spanning from 30–150 nm in diameter, exosomes mediate the transport of various molecules, such as proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids, intercellularly throughout the body. In doing so, exosomes not only act to deliver materials to cancer cells but also as signals that can confer their progression. Accumulating evidence shows the direct correlation between exosomes and the aggressiveness of HNSCC. However, more research is warranted in this field to further our understanding. In this review, we attempt to highlight the tumor-supporting roles and therapeutic potential of exosomes in HNSCC. We introduce first the biogenesis and component features of exosomes, followed by their involvement in HNSCC proliferation and metastasis. We then move on to discuss HNSCC-derived exosomes’ influence on the tumor microenvironment and their function in tumor drug resistance. Finally, we explore the promising potential of exosomes as HNSCC biomarkers and therapeutic targets and drug carriers for HNSCC treatments.

scholarly journals Royal Society Scientific Meeting: Extracellular vesicles in the tumour microenvironment

2017 ◽  
Vol 373 (1737) ◽  
pp. 20170066 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Charles Pink ◽  
Areeg A. Elmusrati ◽  
Daniel Lambert ◽  
David Raul Francisco Carter
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Cells ◽  
Extracellular Vesicles ◽  
Cancer Progression ◽  
Stromal Cells ◽  
Royal Society ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
Tumour Microenvironment ◽  
Therapeutic Benefit ◽  
Scientific Meeting ◽  
Biological Molecules

Cancer cells do not grow as an isolated homogeneous mass; tumours are, in fact, complex and heterogeneous collections of cancer and surrounding stromal cells, collectively termed the tumour microenvironment. The interaction between cancer cells and stromal cells in the tumour microenvironment has emerged as a key concept in the regulation of cancer progression. Understanding the intercellular dialogue in the tumour microenvironment is therefore an important goal. One aspect of this dialogue that has not been appreciated until recently is the role of extracellular vesicles (EVs). EVs are small vesicles released by cells under both normal and pathological conditions; they can transfer biological molecules between cells leading to changes in phenotype. EVs have emerged as important regulators of biological processes and can be dysregulated in diseases such as cancer; rapidly growing interest in their biology and therapeutic potential led to the Royal Society hosting a Scientific Meeting to explore the roles of EVs in the tumour microenvironment. This cross-disciplinary meeting explored examples of how aberrant crosstalk between tumour and stromal cells can promote cancer progression, and how such signalling can be targeted for diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic benefit. In this review, and the special edition of Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B that follows, we will provide an overview of the content and outcomes of this exciting meeting. This article is part of the discussion meeting issue ‘Extracellular vesicles and the tumour microenvironment’.

scholarly journals The Therapeutic Potential of Breast Milk-Derived Extracellular Vesicles

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 745 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey D. Galley ◽  
Gail E. Besner
Keyword(s):  
Breast Milk ◽  
Extracellular Vesicles ◽  
Therapeutic Potential ◽  
Gastrointestinal Disease ◽  
The Body ◽  
Parent Cell ◽  
Therapeutic Effects ◽  
Human Breast Milk ◽  
Therapeutic Benefits ◽  
Health And Disease

In the past few decades, interest in the therapeutic benefits of exosomes and extracellular vesicles (EVs) has grown exponentially. Exosomes/EVs are small particles which are produced and exocytosed by cells throughout the body. They are loaded with active regulatory and stimulatory molecules from the parent cell including miRNAs and enzymes, making them prime targets in therapeutics and diagnostics. Breast milk, known for years to have beneficial health effects, contains a population of EVs which may mediate its therapeutic effects. This review offers an update on the therapeutic potential of exosomes/EVs in disease, with a focus on EVs present in human breast milk and their remedial effect in the gastrointestinal disease necrotizing enterocolitis. Additionally, the relationship between EV miRNAs, health, and disease will be examined, along with the potential for EVs and their miRNAs to be engineered for targeted treatments.

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