Abstract
Previously thought to be nothing more than cellular debris, extracellular vesicles (EVs) are now known to mediate physiological and pathological functions throughout the body. We now understand more about their capacity to transfer nucleic acids and proteins between distant organs, the interaction of their surface proteins with target cells, and the role of vesicle‐bound lipids in health and disease. To date, most observations have been made in reductionist cell culture systems, or as snapshots from patient cohorts. The heterogenous population of vesicles produced in vivo likely act in concert to mediate both beneficial and detrimental effects. EVs play crucial roles in both the pathogenesis of diseases, from cancer to neurodegenerative disease, as well as in the maintenance of system and organ homeostasis. This two‐part review draws on the expertise of researchers working in the field of EV biology and aims to cover the functional role of EVs in physiology and pathology. Part I will outline the role of EVs in normal physiology.
Highlights
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are membrane-bound particles, and are classified according to their biogenesis
MVs and apoptotic bodies are the three “traditional” subgroups of EVs, it is worth noting that additional, distinct subgroups such as apoptotic cell-EVs (Caruso & Poon, 2018) and exomeres (Anand et al, 2021) are being increasingly recognised, emphasizing the heterogeneity of EVs (Scott et al, 2021; Zhang et al, 2018, 2019; Zijlstra & Di Vizio, 2018)
There is considerable overlap in size distribution between some of the smaller EVs and the umbrella term “extracellular vesicle” has been adopted to cover all types of vesicles released by cells, with details on nomenclature being added post-hoc
Summary
Funding information Nathalie Rose-Barr Award, Grant/Award Number: NRB2015; Academy of Finland, Grant/Award Number: 330486; Business Finland (EVE consortium); British Heart Foundation the Centre of Research Excellence, Grant/Award Number: RE/13/1/30181; British Heart Foundation Project Grant, Grant/Award Number: PG/18/53/33895; Tripartite Immunometabolism Consortium, Novo Nordisk Foundation, Grant/Award Number: NNF15CC0018486; National Institute for Health Research (NIHR); Oxford Biomedical Research Centre (BRC); Nuffield Benefaction for Medicine; Wellcome Institutional Strategic Support Fund (ISSF); The Royal Society, Grant/Award Number: RG150218; Jannsen Pharamaceuticals; GPADD; Associação Beneficente Alzira Denise Hertzog Silva (ABADHS); Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq); Fundação
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