Exploitation of Exosomes as Nanocarriers for Gene-, Chemo-, and Immune-Therapy of Cancer

Abstract

The bottleneck in current vector-based cancer therapy is the targeted and controlled release of therapeutics in tumors. Exosomes are submicron-sized vesicles that are secreted by all cell types and are involved in communication and transportation of materials between cells. Analogous in size and function to synthetic nanoparticles, exosomes offer many advantages, rendering them the most promising candidates for targeted drug or gene delivery vehicles. Patient-specific customized therapeutic strategies can be engineered using exosomes derived from the patient's own healthy cells. Therefore, exosome-based cancer therapy has the potential to become an important part of personalized medicine. Interest in exosomes as carrier organelles is relatively recent. Knowledge about exosomal biology and its applications remains limited. The present review is an attempt to describe the current status of the application of exosomes to cancer therapy and the potential challenges associated with their use.

Nanosomes carrying doxorubicin exhibit potent anticancer activity against human lung cancer cells

“…Exosomes due to their size, structure, origin, and similarity with synthetic liposomes have recently garnered attention as delivery vehicle for anticancer drugs and molecules, such as siRNA43444546. Additionally, the presence of several adhesion proteins on the surface of exosomes and its tendency for enhanced fusion with recipient cells under low pH condition uniquely position exosomes to deliver therapeutics with increased efficiency and specificity to tumor cells4748.…”

Roles of exosomes in the normal and diseased eye

“…1). The cancer field in particular has taken the lead investigating exosomes and other EVs for novel approaches to therapy, new mechanistic understanding of tumorigenesis, tumor signaling, novel biomarkers, and modulation of metastasis (Dhondt et al, 2016; Lopatina et al, 2016; Srivastava et al, 2016). For example, modulation of the extracellular matrix (ECM) by matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), annexins and proteoglycans on exosomes have been shown to increase metastasis (Hakulinen et al, 2008; Sakwe et al, 2011; Stepp et al, 2015; You et al, 2015).…”

Development and MPI tracking of novel hypoxia-targeted theranostic exosomes

“…Furthermore, exosomes released from different types of cells, such as cancer cells, immune cells, or stem cells, could be more effective in targeting hypoxic cancer in in vivo [16,60]. Additionally, these in vivo studies could be helpful to understand the role of exosomes as vaccine for cancer immunotherapy [61-63]. …”