Visualizing extracellular vesicles in cancer: from biogenesis to theranostic applications - PubMed
4 hours ago
- #Cancer Nanotheranostics
- #Tumor Microenvironment
- #Extracellular Vesicles
- Extracellular vesicles (EVs) play a key role in the tumor microenvironment (TME) by facilitating intercellular communication, influencing metastatic progression, and immune modulation.
- The clinical application of EVs is hindered by insufficient understanding of their spatiotemporal dynamics in vivo.
- The review discusses EV biogenesis influenced by microenvironmental factors like hypoxia, acidosis, and radiation, offering bioengineering opportunities.
- Current isolation strategies and imaging techniques (both label-based and label-free) for tracking EV biodistribution are critically evaluated.
- The integration of imaging technologies with therapeutic strategies is explored, positioning EVs as potential nanomedicines for liquid biopsy and targeted drug delivery.
- Technical challenges in quantification and off-target labeling are identified, with a proposed roadmap to enhance clinical translation of EV-based nanotheranostics.