bims-exocan Biomed News
on Exosomes roles in cancer
Issue of 2026–03–29
six papers selected by
Muhammad Rizwan, COMSATS University
  1. Research progress on the roles of extracellular vesicles in tumor immunity and drug resistance.
  2. Exosome crown proteins are promising markers for liquid biopsy of breast cancer.
  3. Exosomal Dialogue: The Emerging Role of Cancer-Associated Fibroblast-Derived Exosomes in Colorectal Cancer Progression and Therapy Resistance.
  4. Isolation of Exosomes from MDA-MB-231 Cells Using a Paddle Screw System and Detection of TNBC-Associated Exosomal miRNAs.
  5. Strategies, Challenges and Application Prospects for Exosome Engineering Modifications in Tumor Targeted Therapeutics.
  6. Emerging Salivary Exosome Nanodiagnostics for Early Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma: Platforms, Biomarkers, and Future Perspectives.
  1. Front Immunol. 2026 ;17 1750226
    Research progress on the roles of extracellular vesicles in tumor immunity and drug resistance.
    Minghong Zhao, Meijin Liu, Wenlong Huang, Haibin Shen, Qing Jin, Tao Qin, Defa Huang.
      Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as pivotal mediators of intercellular communication and have attracted considerable scientific interest in recent years owing to their critical roles in tumor immunity and drug resistance. This review offers a comprehensive overview of the mechanisms by which EVs function within the tumor microenvironment, focusing on their involvement in immune evasion, tumor progression, and the development of resistance to therapeutic agents. By summarizing recent research advances, this review highlights the potential of EVs as diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets and emphasizes their significance in improving treatment efficacy and overcoming clinical resistance. This review also outlines future research directions to clarify the multifaceted roles of EVs in cancer biology and facilitate the development of novel therapeutic approaches to enhance patient outcomes.
    Keywords:  biomarkers; drug resistance; extracellular vesicles; tumor immunity; tumor microenvironment
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2026.1750226
  2. Front Oncol. 2026 ;16 1698043
    Exosome crown proteins are promising markers for liquid biopsy of breast cancer.
    Svetlana Tamkovich, Aleksei Shefer, Andrey Kalichkin, Alyona Chernyshova.
      Breast cancer (BC) remains the most common malignant disease in women. However, currently used instrumental and laboratory (CA15-3, CA125, etc.) diagnostic methods demonstrate insufficient sensitivity and specificity for early and reliable detection of BC. In this regard, great expectations are associated with the liquid biopsy method based on the identification of tumor cells or their components, including tumor-derived exosomes. The purpose of this study is to analyze current data on exosome proteins that can be used for diagnostics using liquid biopsy. This review discusses the role of exosomal crown proteins in the spread of BC and assesses their potential as diagnostic markers. The undoubted advantages of using exosomal crown proteins as tumor markers compared to other components of the tumor secretome are the simplicity and reproducibility of their analysis by flow cytometry, as well as, unlike microRNA, tissue specificity. In contrast to prior reviews that primarily catalogue extracellular vesicle cargo, we specifically assess surface-accessible proteins that combine biological relevance with analytical feasibility. This approach bridges mechanistic EV biology with the practical design of clinically translatable diagnostic assays. Standardization of protocols for exosome isolation, antibody validation, and signal amplification will be critical to the successful implementation of this approach into routine clinical practice. Integration of exosomal coronary protein profiling into modern oncology workflows may open new opportunities for early detection, long-term surveillance, and precision treatment of BC.
    Keywords:  MMPs; blood; breast cancer; exosomes; extracellular vesicles (EVs); liquid biopsy; tetraspanins; tumor markers
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fonc.2026.1698043
  3. J Biochem Mol Toxicol. 2026 Apr;40(4): e70780
    Exosomal Dialogue: The Emerging Role of Cancer-Associated Fibroblast-Derived Exosomes in Colorectal Cancer Progression and Therapy Resistance.
    Ahmed Hjazi, Raed Obaid Saleh, Zahraa Abbas Al-Khafaji, Ali G Alkhathami, Malathi H, Mayank Kundlas, Laxmidhar Maharana, Ashish Singh Chauhan, Yasser Fakri Mustafa, Hamza Fadhel Hamzah.
      Colorectal cancer (CRC) remains a significant global health burden, being the third most diagnosed cancer and second leading cause of cancer-related mortality. While there have been advances in early detection and treatment of CRC, outcomes for patients with advanced or metastatic disease remain poor due to high rates of therapy resistance and disease recurrence. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) play a crucial role in the progression of CRC by actively modulating the tumor microenvironment (TME). CAFs differ from normal fibroblasts in that they remain persistently activated and acquire a myofibroblast-type behavior due to various signaling pathways, including transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β), platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), and interleukins in CRC. One of the most important ways that CAFs mediate their pro-tumorigenic effect is through the release of exosomes. Exosomes are small extracellular vesicles that carry a broad range of cargo, including proteins, lipids, microRNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), and metabolites. These CAF-derived exosomes contribute to robust intercellular communication within the tumor microenvironment (TME), reprogramming both cancer cells and the remaining stromal elements. Also, particular emphasis is placed on how CAF-derived exosomes modulate cellular responses to cytotoxic agents, containing 5-fluorouracil, oxaliplatin, irinotecan, and radiotherapy. These exosomes alter DNA damage responses, ferroptosis, apoptosis, oxidative stress, and survival signaling, thereby reshaping the toxicity profile of anticancer treatments. Understanding these exosome-mediated mechanisms is critical for overcoming chemoresistance and radiosurvival in CRC.
    Keywords:  cancer‐associated fibroblasts (CAFs); colorectal cancer (CRC); exosomes; therapy resistance; tumor microenvironment (TME)
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1002/jbt.70780
  4. Micromachines (Basel). 2026 Mar 16. pii: 362. [Epub ahead of print]17(3):
    Isolation of Exosomes from MDA-MB-231 Cells Using a Paddle Screw System and Detection of TNBC-Associated Exosomal miRNAs.
    Han Sol Kim, Soo Suk Lee.
      Exosomes are nanoscale extracellular vesicles that carry disease-associated microRNAs (miRNAs) and represent promising biomarkers for cancer diagnosis. Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) lacks well-defined molecular markers, necessitating sensitive and integrable analytical approaches for TNBC-related exosomal miRNAs. In this study, exosomes were isolated from MDA-MB-231 TNBC cells using a paddle screw-based system designed to enhance mass transfer through active rotation, providing a mechanically driven isolation strategy that is compatible with miniaturized and microfluidic platforms. This dynamic isolation process enabled rapid and efficient exosome recovery within a short processing time. Three TNBC-associated miRNAs encapsulated in the isolated exosomes were quantitatively analyzed using polyadenylation tailing (poly(A) tailing) and specific bidirectional extension sequence-based assays combined with reverse transcription quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR). The bidirectional extension (BDE) assay generated highly specific PCR templates, leading to improved amplification specificity and reduced background signals. The RT-qPCR analysis exhibited high sensitivity, wide dynamic range, and good reproducibility for all target miRNAs. Overall, these results demonstrate that the integration of a paddle screw-based exosome isolation module with an extension-based nucleic acid detection strategy provides a scalable and biosensor-compatible analytical framework for profiling TNBC-associated exosomal miRNAs, with potential applications in microfluidic liquid biopsy platforms and exosome-based cancer diagnostics.
    Keywords:  3D-paddle screw; Bi-directional extension (BDE); MDA-MB-231 cell line; RT-qPCR; exosome; microRNA
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/mi17030362
  5. Int J Nanomedicine. 2026 ;21 572435
    Strategies, Challenges and Application Prospects for Exosome Engineering Modifications in Tumor Targeted Therapeutics.
    Xiaoyan Ge, Shuo Shan, Haozhong Lu, Weihua Wang, Chao Gao, Shunli Fu.
      Nanodrugs have significantly revolutionized tumor therapy. Nevertheless, conventional nanodrug delivery systems suffer from a critical limitation: only ~0.7% of administered nanoparticles effectively accumulate in solid tumors, severely restricting clinical therapeutic efficacy. In recent years, exosomes-natural extracellular vesicles-have emerged as highly promising candidates for tumor-targeted drug delivery. Endowed with inherent low immunogenicity, excellent biocompatibility, and intrinsic capacity to traverse biological barriers, exosomes offer distinct advantages over conventional nanocarriers. Their characteristic lipid bilayer membrane not only protects encapsulated cargo but also enables surface engineering for functional optimization. Through strategic engineering modifications, exosomes can be endowed with enhanced tumor-targeting specificity, tunable payload release profiles, and multimodal functionalities, thus enabling the development of "smart" therapeutic platforms. This review systematically outlines current methodologies for exosome isolation and characterization, with a particular focus on engineering strategies aimed at augmenting tumor targeting. We comprehensively analyze approaches based on physical manipulation, chemical conjugation, and biological engineering. Furthermore, we summarize recent advances in exosome-based targeted cancer therapies and discuss key challenges related to scalability, standardization, regulatory approval, and clinical translation. Finally, we highlight emerging opportunities and future perspectives for next-generation exosome-engineered therapeutic development, aiming to provide a robust technical and conceptual foundation for advancing tumor therapy.
    Keywords:  engineering modifications; exosome; nanotechnology; tumor targeted therapeutics
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.2147/IJN.S572435
  6. Int J Nanomedicine. 2026 ;21 577306
    Emerging Salivary Exosome Nanodiagnostics for Early Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma: Platforms, Biomarkers, and Future Perspectives.
    Lai-Xi Zhao, En-Tang Wang, Wen-Hao Jia, Mo-Han Wang, Zhao Pan, Liang Dong, Hui-Qin Wen, Wen-Hua Xu, Rui Xu.
      Early oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is frequently missed because conventional imaging and biopsy are poorly suited to detect subtle, preclinical molecular changes. Emerging salivary exosome nanodiagnostics aims to convert an anatomically proximal, information-rich nanoscale biospecimen into quantitative and repeatable readouts for screening and longitudinal monitoring. Clinical translation, however, is constrained by four bottlenecks: (i) pre-analytical variability in saliva collection, processing, and storage; (ii) yield-purity trade-offs during vesicle enrichment; (iii) low-abundance tumor-derived signals masked by abundant background vesicles; and (iv) biomarker heterogeneity that limits robustness across cohorts. Here, we integrate the landscape of salivary exosomal biomarkers (nucleic acids, proteins, and other cargo) and synthesize nanotechnology-enabled solutions that directly address these barriers, including microfluidic and affinity-based enrichment, nucleic-acid amplification circuits (eg, RCA, HCR, CHA) for signal gain, and optical/electrochemical transduction (eg, SPR, SERS) compatible with microliter-scale samples. Beyond listing platforms, we propose a unifying framework: co-design capture and readout to preserve biological specificity, match biomarker modality to detection physics, and prioritize multi-marker panels with transparent analytical benchmarks. Finally, we outline a translational roadmap spanning standardization, reproducibility, prospective multicenter validation, manufacturability, and regulatory readiness to accelerate clinically actionable early OSCC detection.
    Keywords:  exosomal biomarkers; liquid biopsy; nanodiagnostics; nanoplatform; oral squamous cell carcinoma; salivary exosomes
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.2147/IJN.S577306
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