title: Analysis of the RNA content of the exosomes derived from blood serum and urine and its potential as biomarkers.
abstract: Exosomes are tiny vesicles (30-150 nm) constantly secreted by all healthy and abnormal cells, and found in abundance in all body fluids. These vesicles, loaded with unique RNA and protein cargo, have a wide range of biological functions, including cell-to-cell communication and signalling. As such, exosomes hold tremendous potential as biomarkers and could lead to the development of minimally invasive diagnostics and next generation therapies within the next few years. Here, we describe the strategies for isolation of exosomes from human blood serum and urine, characterization of their RNA cargo by sequencing, and present the initial data on exosome labelling and uptake tracing in a cell culture model. The value of exosomes for clinical applications is discussed with an emphasis on their potential for diagnosing and treating neurodegenerative diseases and brain cancer.
authors.affiliation: Thermo Fisher Scientific, Austin, TX 78744, USA.
authors.forename: Mu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Thermo Fisher Scientific, Austin, TX 78744, USA.
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Zeringer
authors.affiliation: Thermo Fisher Scientific, Austin, TX 78744, USA.
authors.forename: Timothy
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Barta
authors.affiliation: Thermo Fisher Scientific, Austin, TX 78744, USA.
authors.forename: Jeoffrey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schageman
authors.affiliation: Thermo Fisher Scientific, Austin, TX 78744, USA.
authors.forename: Angie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: Thermo Fisher Scientific, Austin, TX 78744, USA sasha.vlassov@thermofisher.com.
authors.forename: Alexander V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Vlassov
mesh_terms: D001483:Base Sequence; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine; D055354:Exosomes / Q000235:genetics* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005453:Fluorescence; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012313:RNA / Q000235:genetics*; D017423:Sequence Analysis, RNA; D044967:Serum / Q000737:chemistry*; D014556:Urine / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D012313:RNA
keywords: biomarker; circulating RNA; exosomes; extracellular vesicles