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Updated: Jul 25, 2025

Isolation, Characterization, and Therapeutic Application of Extracellular Vesicles from Cultured Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells
Published on: September 23, 2022
Extracellular Vesicles and Infection: From Hijacked Machinery to Therapeutic Tools
Diogo Gonçalves1, Sandra N Pinto1, Fábio Fernandes1,2
1iBB-Institute for Bioengineering and Biosciences and i4HB-Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, Av. Rovisco Pais, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal.
Abstract:
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) comprise a broad range of secreted cell-derived membrane vesicles. Beyond their more well-characterized role in cell communication, in recent years, EVs have also been shown to play important roles during infection. Viruses can hijack the biogenesis of exosomes (which are small EVs) to promote viral spreading. Additionally, these exosomes are also important mediators in inflammation and immune responses during both bacterial and viral infections. This review summarizes these mechanisms while also describing the impact of bacterial EVs in regulating immune responses. Finally, the review also focuses on the potential and challenges of using EVs, in particular, to tackle infectious diseases.
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