The promise of exosome applications in treating central nervous system diseases

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

Exosomes (EXs), a type of extracellular vesicles, are secreted from virtually all types of cells. EXs serve as cell-to-cell communicators by conveying proteins and nucleic acids with regulatory functions. Increasing evidence shows that EXs are implicated in the pathogenesis of central nervous system (CNS) diseases. Moreover, EXs have recently been highlighted as a new promising therapeutic strategy for in vivo delivery of nucleotides and drugs. Studies have revealed that infusion of EXs elicits beneficial effects on the CNS injury animal models. As compared to cell-based therapy, EXs-based therapy for CNS diseases has unique advantages, opening a new path for neurological medicine. In this review, we summarized the current state of knowledge of EXs, the roles and applications of EXs as a viable pathological biomarker, and EX-based therapy for CNS diseases.

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

Browse all related research

Filter the research library by this study's title keywords, author, or publication year.