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Updated: Dec 21, 2025

Extraction of Extracellular Vesicles from Whole Tissue
Published on: February 7, 2019
Physiological and pathological insights into exosomes in the brain
Xiao-Hui Li1,2,3, Juan Zhang1,2,3, Ding-Feng Li1,2,4,3
1Institute on Aging and Brain Disorders, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230001, China.
Abstract:
Exosomes are small vesicles secreted by all cell types in the brain and play a role in cell-cell communication through the transfer of cargo or encapsulation. Exosomes in the brain have considerable impact on neuronal development, activation, and regeneration. In addition, exosomes are reported to be involved in the onset and propagation of various neurodegenerative diseases. In this review, we discuss the content of exosomes derived from major cell types in the brain, and their function under physiological and pathological conditions.
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