Illuminating the physiology of extracellular vesicles

Abstract

Extracellular vesicles play a crucial role in intercellular communication by transmitting biological materials from donor cells to recipient cells. They have pathophysiologic roles in cancer metastasis, neurodegenerative diseases, and inflammation. Extracellular vesicles also show promise as emerging therapeutics, with understanding of their physiology including targeting, distribution, and clearance therefore becoming an important issue. Here, we review recent advances in methods for tracking and imaging extracellular vesicles in vivo and critically discuss their systemic distribution, targeting, and kinetics based on up-to-date evidence in the literature.