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Targeted Exosomes for Drug Delivery: Biomanufacturing, Surface Tagging, and Validation
Yingnan Si1, Seulhee Kim1, Eric Zhang1
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), 1825 University Blvd, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA.
Biotechnology Journal
|October 10, 2019
Summary
This study developed a novel biomanufacturing platform for targeted exosomes, overcoming production and delivery challenges for cancer therapeutics. These engineered exosomes demonstrate effective cancer cell targeting and drug delivery, paving the way for clinical applications.
Area of Science:
- Biotechnology
- Nanomedicine
- Oncology
Background:
- Exosomes are promising for cancer therapy due to low antigenicity.
- Clinical application is limited by low production yield and poor cancer targeting.
Purpose of the Study:
- To create a biomanufacturing platform for cancer-targeted exosomes for drug delivery.
- To develop an efficient surface tagging technique for exosome functionalization.
Main Methods:
- Established a scalable, high-yield exosome production in a stirred-tank bioreactor.
- Developed monoclonal antibody (mAb)-exosome conjugates via surface tagging.
- Validated exosome quality (TEM, NanoSight, Western blot) and cancer cell binding (flow cytometry, confocal microscopy).
- Loaded romidepsin into mAb-exosomes and assessed in vitro cytotoxicity and in vivo efficacy in tumor xenograft models.
Main Results:
- Confirmed high-quality exosomes with efficient cancer cell surface binding.
- Demonstrated high in vitro cytotoxicity of mAb-exosome-romidepsin against cancer cells.
- Validated in vivo cancer targeting specificity, anti-cancer efficacy, and drug delivery capability.
Conclusions:
- Developed novel techniques for targeted exosome production and drug delivery.
- The platform supports large-scale studies and facilitates clinical translation of exosome-based cancer therapies.
