The emerging role of extracellular vesicles as biomarkers for urogenital cancers

Abstract

The knowledge gained from comprehensive profiling projects that aim to define the complex genomic alterations present within cancers will undoubtedly improve our ability to detect and treat those diseases, but the influence of these resources on our understanding of basic cancer biology is still to be demonstrated. Extracellular vesicles have gained considerable attention in past years, both as mediators of intercellular signalling and as potential sources for the discovery of novel cancer biomarkers. In general, research on extracellular vesicles investigates either the basic mechanism of vesicle formation and cargo incorporation, or the isolation of vesicles from available body fluids for biomarker discovery. A deeper understanding of the cargo molecules present in extracellular vesicles obtained from patients with urogenital cancers, through high-throughput proteomics or genomics approaches, will aid in the identification of novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, and can potentially lead to the discovery of new therapeutic targets.

Post-translational add-ons mark the path in exosomal protein sorting

“…EVs have potential as non-invasive biomarkers for several pathological conditions, particularly due to their accessibility from biological fluids, facilitating the detection of certain pathologies [130][131][132][133]. A specific PTM of a protein in EVs in particular diseases could constitute a potential biomarker (Fig.…”

Engineering mesenchymal stem cells to improve their exosome efficacy and yield for cell‐free therapy

“…Ultrafiltration utilises force to push the sample through the filter and is often used in combination with other techniques as it is more time efficient than centrifugation methods; however, there is the potential loss of EVs due to trapping in the pore membrane or non-specific binding of EVs to the membrane (Figure 2). While each isolation technique comes with its own limitations, there are ways to overcome those limitations and recommendations have been proposed previously [25,27–29].

10.1080/20013078.2018.1522236-F0002Figure 2.Common methods in isolating the extracellular vesicles.

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Improved resolution in extracellular vesicle populations using 405 instead of 488 nm side scatter

“…In an era of precision medicine, extracellular vesicles (EVs) are rapidly emerging as important biomarkers in cancer, sepsis, cardiovascular disease and other inflammatory disorders [1–3]. Beyond their association with specific disease states, EVs may in fact directly mediate and disseminate disease processes as they are capable of releasing or transferring internal or membrane-bound cargo to other cells or become incorporated directly into target cells [4].…”