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Pharmaceutics
Special Issues
Exosomes as Drug Carriers
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Exosomes as Drug Carriers

A special issue of Pharmaceutics (ISSN 1999-4923). This special issue belongs to the section "Biologics and Biosimilars".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2020) | Viewed by 13754

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Lucio Barile

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Cardiology, Cardiocentro Ticino Foundation, Lugano, Switzerland
Interests: pathophysiological mechanisms; cardiovascular diseases; novel exosomes-based approach; cardioprotection
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Sveva Bollini

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Regenerative Medicine Laboratory, Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Genova, 16132 Genova, Italy
Interests: characterization of extracellular vesicles as theranostics; cardiotoxicity from cancer treatment; cardiac repair; paracrine communication; human perinatal stem cells
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear colleagues,

Systemic administration of synthetic drugs and biotherapeutics such as protein and nucleic acids demands the necessity to develop alternatively, clinically applicable drug delivery systems to target specific organs. The discovery of exosomes (Exo) as natural carriers of functional small RNA and proteins has raised great interest in the drug delivery field. Exo deliver their surface proteins and luminal content to the recipient cells, thus it may be possible to exploit these vesicles for therapeutic delivery of RNAs and peptides. Synthetic drugs can also be encapsulated into Exo as they have a hydrophilic core, which makes them suitable to host water-soluble drugs. Targeted Exo can be obtained by displaying targeting molecules, such as peptides or antibody fragments recognizing target antigens, on the outer surface of Exo. Moreover, the fact that Exo are a natural product of the body, results in a low immune response. Finally, they show reduced long-term accumulation in organs or tissues, with relatively low systemic toxicity. This Research Topic is aimed: 1) at defining Exo loading strategies 2) at analyzing advantages of Exo-based drug delivery in terms of biocompatibility 3) at investigating the impact of Exo-based approaches vs. conventional drugs.

Dr. Lucio Barile
Prof. Dr. Sveva Bollini
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pharmaceutics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 2942 KiB  
Article
Coincubation as miR-Loading Strategy to Improve the Anti-Tumor Effect of Stem Cell-Derived EVs
by Alessia Brossa, Marta Tapparo, Valentina Fonsato, Elli Papadimitriou, Michela Delena, Giovanni Camussi and Benedetta Bussolati
Pharmaceutics 2021, 13(1), 76; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics13010076 - 08 Jan 2021
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 2567
Abstract
Extracellular vesicles are considered a novel therapeutic tool, due to their ability to transfer their cargoes to target cells. Different strategies to directly load extracellular vesicles with RNA species have been proposed. Electroporation has been used for the loading of non-active vesicles; however, [...] Read more.
Extracellular vesicles are considered a novel therapeutic tool, due to their ability to transfer their cargoes to target cells. Different strategies to directly load extracellular vesicles with RNA species have been proposed. Electroporation has been used for the loading of non-active vesicles; however, the engineering of vesicles already carrying a therapeutically active cargo is still under investigation. Here, we set up a coincubation method to increase the anti-tumor effect of extracellular vesicles isolated from human liver stem cells (HLSC-EVs). Using the coincubation protocol, vesicles were loaded with the anti-tumor miRNA-145, and their effect was evaluated on renal cancer stem cell invasion. Loaded HLSC-EVs maintained their integrity and miR transfer ability. Loaded miR-145, but not miR-145 alone, was protected by RNAse digestion, possibly due to its binding to RNA-binding proteins on HLSC-EV surface, such as Annexin A2. Moreover, miR-145 coincubated HLSC-EVs were more effective in inhibiting the invasive properties of cancer stem cells, in comparison to naïve vesicles. The protocol reported here exploits a well described property of extracellular vesicles to bind nucleic acids on their surface and protect them from degradation, in order to obtain an effective miRNA loading, thus increasing the activity of therapeutically active naïve extracellular vesicles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Exosomes as Drug Carriers)
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Review

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16 pages, 258 KiB  
Review
Extracellular Vesicles as Natural, Safe and Efficient Drug Delivery Systems
by Federico Villa, Rodolfo Quarto and Roberta Tasso
Pharmaceutics 2019, 11(11), 557; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics11110557 - 28 Oct 2019
Cited by 74 | Viewed by 4523
Abstract
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are particles naturally released from cells, delimited by a lipid bilayer, carrying functionally active biological molecules. In addition to their physiological role in cellular communication, the interest of the scientific community has recently turned to the use of EVs as [...] Read more.
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are particles naturally released from cells, delimited by a lipid bilayer, carrying functionally active biological molecules. In addition to their physiological role in cellular communication, the interest of the scientific community has recently turned to the use of EVs as vehicles for delivering therapeutic molecules. Several attempts are being made to ameliorate drug encapsulation and targeting, but these efforts are thwarted if the starting material does not meet stringent quality criteria. Here, we take a step back to the sources and isolation procedures that could guarantee significant improvements in the purification of EVs to be used as drug carriers, highlighting the advantages and shortcomings of each approach. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Exosomes as Drug Carriers)
20 pages, 566 KiB  
Review
Extracellular Vesicles as a Potential Therapy for Neonatal Conditions: State of the Art and Challenges in Clinical Translation
by Andreea C. Matei, Lina Antounians and Augusto Zani
Pharmaceutics 2019, 11(8), 404; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics11080404 - 11 Aug 2019
Cited by 35 | Viewed by 6200
Abstract
Despite advances in intensive care, several neonatal conditions typically due to prematurity affect vital organs and are associated with high mortality and long-term morbidities. Current treatment strategies for these babies are only partially successful or are effective only in selected patients. Regenerative medicine [...] Read more.
Despite advances in intensive care, several neonatal conditions typically due to prematurity affect vital organs and are associated with high mortality and long-term morbidities. Current treatment strategies for these babies are only partially successful or are effective only in selected patients. Regenerative medicine has been shown to be a promising option for these conditions at an experimental level, but still warrants further exploration for the development of optimal treatment. Although stem cell-based therapy has emerged as a treatment option, studies have shown that it is associated with potential risks and hazards, especially in the fragile population of babies. Recently, extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as an attractive therapeutic alternative that holds great regenerative potential and is cell-free. EVs are nanosized particles endogenously produced by cells that mediate intercellular communication through the transfer of their cargo. Currently, EVs are garnering considerable attention as they are the key effectors of stem cell paracrine signaling and can epigenetically regulate target cell genes through the release of RNA species, such as microRNA. Herein, we review the emerging literature on the therapeutic potential of EVs derived from different sources for the treatment of neonatal conditions that affect the brain, retinas, spine, lungs, and intestines and discuss the challenges for the translation of EVs into clinical practice. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Exosomes as Drug Carriers)
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