Exosomes and Their MicroRNA Cargo: New Players in Peripheral Nerve Regeneration

Abstract

Peripheral nerve injury is a major clinical problem and often results in a poor functional recovery. Despite obvious clinical need, treatment strategies have been largely suboptimal. In the nervous system, exosomes, which are nanosized extracellular vesicles, play a critical role in mediating intercellular communication. More specifically, microRNA carried by exosomes are involved in various key processes such as nerve and vascular regeneration, and exosomes originating from Schwann cells, macrophages, and mesenchymal stem cells can promote peripheral nerve regeneration. In this review, the current knowledge of exosomes' and their miRNA cargo's role in peripheral nerve regeneration are summarized. The possible future roles of exosomes in therapy and the potential for microRNA-containing exosomes to treat peripheral nerve injuries are also discussed.

Adipose Stem Cell-Derived Extracellular Vesicles Induce Proliferation of Schwann Cells via Internalization

“…MicroRNAs were shown to play an important role in modulating the cellular behavior of neurons and SCs in response to injury [60][61][62][63]. The pro-regenerative effect of EVs derived from different sources after nerve injury is indeed associated with transported microRNAs, reviewed in [64]. In addition, it was recently demonstrated that ADSC-EVs contain mRNAs of neurotrophic factors [44] and we confirmed the presence of NGF, BDNF, CNTF, and GDNF in rADSC-EVs.…”

Mesenchymal Stem Cells Reduce Corneal Fibrosis and Inflammation via Extracellular Vesicle-Mediated Delivery of miRNA

“…EVs fuse with remote cells delivering a cargo of protein and RNA that can modify the phenotype of the target cells [14,[20][21][22]. Involvement of EVs has been implicated in regenerative effects of MSCs in a wide variety of tissues including skin, muscle, neural tissues, lung, vascular tissue, bone, and cartilage [21,[23][24][25][26][27][28][29]. MicroRNA (miRNA) has been frequently cited as an important mediator of the biological effects of MSCsecreted EVs [1,23,24,30,31].…”

MicroRNA Profiling of Exosomes Derived from Red Blood Cell Units: Implications in Transfusion-Related Immunomodulation

“…They are the products of exocytosis; they contain DNA, coding or noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs), and protein fragments that are secreted by their parental cell and can be taken into the recipient cells. Exosomes are reported 2 BioMed Research International to carry out several physiological and pathophysiological functions during carcinogenesis and immunomodulation in both in vitro and in vivo conditions [12][13][14][15]. ncRNAs of the exosomes have been proved to play an important role in regulation of these procedures [14,15].…”

“…Exosomes are reported 2 BioMed Research International to carry out several physiological and pathophysiological functions during carcinogenesis and immunomodulation in both in vitro and in vivo conditions [12][13][14][15]. ncRNAs of the exosomes have been proved to play an important role in regulation of these procedures [14,15]. Danesh et al in their study have revealed that exosomes derived from RBC units could potentiate T-cell survival and mitogen-induced proliferation through antigen presenting cells (APCs), eventually contributing to TRIM [9].…”