Title : Exosome-like nanoparticles from plants: Promising pharmaceutical preparations and delivery carriers
Abstract:
Exosomes are a heterogeneous group of nano-sized natural membrane vesicles released from various cells and exist in body fluids. Exosomes act as carriers with many kinds of bioactive molecules (e.g., proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids) to play an important role in cell-cell communication. In recent years, exosomes as therapeutic drug carriers for drug delivery have received extensive attention. However, the low targeting ability and size-dependent cellular uptake of native exosomes could profoundly affect the delivery performance. Recent studies have indicated that engineered exosomes can increase drug uptake efficiency and subsequent drug efficacy. Engineered exosomes can serve as a promising drug delivery strategy for multiple diseases. However, the best model for donor cells is still absent. Plant cells can produce exosome-like nanoparticles (PENs) to regulate various biological functions. The biological function and cargo-loading mechanisms of PENs have been studied. Unfortunately, the current knowledge of PENs' physiology, diversity, internalization, and cargo delivery is still limited. In this presentation, we will briefly introduce the recent Advance of engineered PENs in treating multiple diseases and then focus on discussing the advantages and challenges of PENs-based drug delivery platforms to enrich and boost the development of PENs as a promising drug delivery strategy.