Circulating Extracellular Vesicles As Biomarkers and Drug Delivery Vehicles in Cardiovascular Diseases

Abstract

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are composed of a lipid bilayer containing transmembrane and soluble proteins. Subtypes of EVs include ectosomes (microparticles/microvesicles), exosomes, and apoptotic bodies that can be released by various tissues into biological fluids. EV cargo can modulate physiological and pathological processes in recipient cells through near- and long-distance intercellular communication. Recent studies have shown that origin, amount, and internal cargos (nucleic acids, proteins, and lipids) of EVs are variable under different pathological conditions, including cardiovascular diseases (CVD). The early detection and management of CVD reduce premature morbidity and mortality. Circulating EVs have attracted great interest as a potential biomarker for diagnostics and follow-up of CVD. This review highlights the role of circulating EVs as biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic follow-up of CVD, and also for drug delivery. Despite the great potential of EVs as a tool to study the pathophysiology of CVD, further studies are needed to increase the spectrum of EV-associated applications.

Extracellular Vesicles as Drivers of Immunoinflammation in Atherothrombosis

“…EVs are small lipid-bilayer vesicles that contain a complex cargo of nucleic acids, proteins, and lipids [ 4 ]. They are considered cell-to-cell signaling modules released from any cell type (both prokaryotic and eukaryotic) into distinct interstitial compartments and body fluids with potential value as disease biomarkers and drug-delivery vehicles [ 5 ]. Interestingly, EVs exert many biological processes contributing to health and disease homeostasis [ 6 , 7 ] and cardiovascular disease has become a fast expanding field of interest within EVs.…”

Adipose Tissue-Derived Mesenchymal Stem/Stromal Cells and Their Contribution to Angiogenic Processes in Tissue Regeneration

“…As a result, EVs participate in a number of physiological and pathological processes, including tumor metastasis. A growing number of reports also show that circulating EVs can serve as biomarkers in various diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases, cardiometabolic diseases, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and various types of cancer [ 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 ]. There are different modes of transfer of the EV cargo into the recipient cells, including direct contact with membrane fusion, receptor-ligand interaction, or endocytosis [ 50 ].…”

Extracellular Vesicles and Alveolar Epithelial-Capillary Barrier Disruption in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: Pathophysiological Role and Therapeutic Potential

“…Moreover, platelet-derived EVs induce apoptosis of endothelial cells by the action of miR-142-3p and the subsequent repression of Bcl-2 like 1 (BCL2L1) and Bcl-2-associated transcription factor (BCLAF1) genes ( Bao et al, 2017 ). Therefore, the increased levels of circulating platelet-derived EVs have been strongly proposed as indicators of endothelial dysfunction ( Chiva-Blanch et al, 2019 ; Oggero et al, 2019 ; de Freitas et al, 2021 ).…”