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Updated: Jan 21, 2026

Isolation and Characterization of RNA-Containing Exosomes
Published on: January 9, 2012
New insight into isolation, identification techniques and medical applications of exosomes
Xiao-Xia Yang1, Chao Sun1, Lei Wang1
1Department of Pharmacology, Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology (Ministry of Education), Drug Screening Unit Platform, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Shandong University, Jinan 250012, China.
Abstract:
Exosomes, which are nano-vesicles produced by most cell types, play an irreplaceable role in cell-cell communication. They are extracellular small vesicles that can delivery various cargos of DNA, RNAs, proteins, and lipids. Because exosomes have different secretory components under physiological conditions and pathological conditions, it has been extensively studied in the field of diseases as a therapeutic target, as a drug/gene delivery vector and as a novel cancer marker. Despite the great development in recent decades, there are still many obstacles to be overcome, for example, the separation method is not standardized with low yield and poor stability, which limit its medical application. This review mainly summarizes the main progresses of isolation and identification techniques, diversity function and medical application of exosomes in recent years.
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