Extracellular Vesicles in Rheumatoid Arthritis and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Functions and Applications

Abstract

In the last two decades, extracellular vesicles (EVs) have aroused wide interest among researchers in basic and clinical research. EVs, small membrane vesicles are released by almost all kinds of cells into the extracellular environment. According to many recent studies, EVs participate in immunomodulation and play an important role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. In addition, EVs have great potential in the diagnosis and therapy of autoimmune diseases. Here, we reviewed the latest research advances on the functions and mechanisms of EVs and their roles in the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus.

Knowledge Mapping of Exosomes in Autoimmune Diseases: A Bibliometric Analysis (2002–2021)

“…They also found exosomes derived from T cells and B cells can transmit miR-142-3p and miR-BART13-3p to the epithelial cells, thereby impairing the function of epithelial cells and promoting the occurrence of SS (56,57). Qianjin Lu and Ming Zhao co-published 4 papers, two of which reviewed the research progress of exosomes in the pathogenesis, immune regulation and treatment of AIDs (53,58), and the two other articles pointed out the mechanism of serum exosomal miR-451a and miR-642-3p involved in the pathogenesis of SLE and SS (59,60). Wei Wei published 4 papers, three of which reviewed the pathogenesis of extracellular vesicles in vasculitis and lupus nephritis (LN) (61)(62)(63), and another article pointed out plasma exosomes participate in the inflammation process of microscopic polyangiitis (64).…”

An update on epigenetic regulation in autoimmune diseases

“…Some miRNAs can upregulate the expression of TNF-α and other inflammatory factors, while some miRNAs alleviate the inflammatory response of RA. Among them, miR155 and miR146a have the most related studies [ 99 ]. The upregulated miRNAs in RASFs included miR155, miR-21, miR128–3p, miR34a-5p, and miR574–5p, etc [ [100] , [101] , [102] , [103] , [104] ].…”

Small Extracellular Vesicles in Transplant Rejection

“…These nanovesicles are engaged in a number of physiological processes, including intercellular signaling and cell to cell communication [ 40 , 41 ], cellular homeostasis [ 42 ], autophagy [ 43 ], reproduction and development [ 44 , 45 , 46 ]. These vesicles also play significant roles in human pathology, inducing or propagating different types of cancer [ 47 ], neurodegenerative diseases [ 48 ], infectious diseases [ 49 ], pregnancy complications [ 50 ] or autoimmune conditions [ 51 ]. They also participate in the allograft rejection/tolerance [ 52 , 53 , 54 ].…”