Role of Extracellular Vesicles in Health and Diseases—Implications for Digital Health

Dear Colleagues,

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are small membrane-bound particles released by cells that play a pivotal role in intercellular communication. These vesicles carry a diverse array of biological molecules, including proteins, lipids, RNA, and DNA, allowing them to influence various physiological processes and pathological conditions. In health, EVs contribute to maintaining homeostasis by participating in processes such as tissue repair, immune responses, and blood coagulation. They are essential for the exchange of beneficial cellular information, facilitating normal cell function and adaptation to changing environments. Conversely, in disease states, EVs can have detrimental roles. For instance, cancer cells exploit EVs to promote tumor progression and metastasis by altering the tumor microenvironment, enhancing angiogenesis, and suppressing immune surveillance. Similarly, in neurodegenerative diseases, EVs can propagate pathogenic proteins between cells, contributing to disease spread. Additionally, in cardiovascular diseases, EVs can influence plaque stability and thrombosis. Thus, understanding the dual roles of EVs in health and disease is crucial, as doing so opens the door to novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies, leveraging their respective biomarker potentials and therapeutic cargo delivery capabilities.

In this Special Issue focusing on the future role of EVs in digital health and systems health, we welcome contributions that provide novel research findings related to this focus.

Dr. Allan Stensballe
Guest Editor

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• extracellular vesicles
• inflammation
• exosome
• liquid biomarker