Journal of Extracellular Vesicles (May 2015)

Biological properties of extracellular vesicles and their physiological functions

  • María Yáñez-Mó,
  • Pia R.-M. Siljander,
  • Zoraida Andreu,
  • Apolonija Bedina Zavec,
  • Francesc E. Borràs,
  • Edit I. Buzas,
  • Krisztina Buzas,
  • Enriqueta Casal,
  • Francesco Cappello,
  • Joana Carvalho,
  • Eva Colás,
  • Anabela Cordeiro-da Silva,
  • Stefano Fais,
  • Juan M. Falcon-Perez,
  • Irene M. Ghobrial,
  • Bernd Giebel,
  • Mario Gimona,
  • Michael Graner,
  • Ihsan Gursel,
  • Mayda Gursel,
  • Niels H. H. Heegaard,
  • An Hendrix,
  • Peter Kierulf,
  • Katsutoshi Kokubun,
  • Maja Kosanovic,
  • Veronika Kralj-Iglic,
  • Eva-Maria Krämer-Albers,
  • Saara Laitinen,
  • Cecilia Lässer,
  • Thomas Lener,
  • Erzsébet Ligeti,
  • Aija Linē,
  • Georg Lipps,
  • Alicia Llorente,
  • Jan Lötvall,
  • Mateja Manček-Keber,
  • Antonio Marcilla,
  • Maria Mittelbrunn,
  • Irina Nazarenko,
  • Esther N.M. Nolte-‘t Hoen,
  • Tuula A. Nyman,
  • Lorraine O'Driscoll,
  • Mireia Olivan,
  • Carla Oliveira,
  • Éva Pállinger,
  • Hernando A. del Portillo,
  • Jaume Reventós,
  • Marina Rigau,
  • Eva Rohde,
  • Marei Sammar,
  • Francisco Sánchez-Madrid,
  • N. Santarém,
  • Katharina Schallmoser,
  • Marie Stampe Ostenfeld,
  • Willem Stoorvogel,
  • Roman Stukelj,
  • Susanne G. Van der Grein,
  • M. Helena Vasconcelos,
  • Marca H. M. Wauben,
  • Olivier De Wever

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3402/jev.v4.27066
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 4, no. 0
pp. 1 – 60

Abstract

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In the past decade, extracellular vesicles (EVs) have been recognized as potent vehicles of intercellular communication, both in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. This is due to their capacity to transfer proteins, lipids and nucleic acids, thereby influencing various physiological and pathological functions of both recipient and parent cells. While intensive investigation has targeted the role of EVs in different pathological processes, for example, in cancer and autoimmune diseases, the EV-mediated maintenance of homeostasis and the regulation of physiological functions have remained less explored. Here, we provide a comprehensive overview of the current understanding of the physiological roles of EVs, which has been written by crowd-sourcing, drawing on the unique EV expertise of academia-based scientists, clinicians and industry based in 27 European countries, the United States and Australia. This review is intended to be of relevance to both researchers already working on EV biology and to newcomers who will encounter this universal cell biological system. Therefore, here we address the molecular contents and functions of EVs in various tissues and body fluids from cell systems to organs. We also review the physiological mechanisms of EVs in bacteria, lower eukaryotes and plants to highlight the functional uniformity of this emerging communication system.

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