Myeloid Extracellular Vesicles: Messengers from the Demented Brain

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Immunology
• Cell Biology

Background:

• Blood-borne monocyte-derived cells are increasingly recognized for their critical roles in central nervous system (CNS) disorders, including neurodegenerative conditions like Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and ALS.
• While their trafficking is well-studied in neuroinflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis, their involvement in neurodegeneration is a growing area of research.
• CNS-resident myeloid cells, including microglia and perivascular macrophages, are central to understanding neurological disease pathogenesis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the available information on the detection of extracellular vesicles (EVs) in neurological disorders.
• To emphasize the significance of EVs in studying neurodegenerative diseases.
• To highlight the potential of EVs as biomarkers for CNS conditions.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on extracellular vesicles in neurological disorders.
• Focus on studies investigating EVs in neurodegenerative diseases.
• Analysis of methods for detecting and identifying cell origin of EVs in biological fluids.

Main Results:

• Myeloid cells, including infiltrating macrophages and microglia, exhibit dual protective and destructive functions in neurological disorders.
• Identification of the functional phenotype of myeloid cells during disease progression is crucial.
• Extracellular vesicles, such as exosomes and shed vesicles, are released by cells and can be detected in biofluids, providing insights into brain cell activity.

Conclusions:

• Extracellular vesicles are valuable tools for accessing information from the brain, an otherwise inaccessible site.
• EV detection in biological fluids can help elucidate the role of myeloid cells in neurological disorders.
• Further research into EVs holds promise for understanding and potentially diagnosing neurodegenerative diseases.