Extracellular Vesicles in Obesity and Metabolic Disease: Emerging Mechanisms, Inter-Organ Crosstalk, and Translational Opportunities
A special issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409). This special issue belongs to the section "Cellular Immunology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 3
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Obesity is a complex and multifactorial condition that significantly increases one’s risk of developing chronic metabolic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular dysfunction, cognitive impairment, and metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). Recent advances have identified extracellular vesicles (EVs)—nanosized membrane-bound vesicles released by nearly all cell types—as critical mediators of intercellular and inter-organ communication in both physiological and pathological states.
This Special Issue will focus on the emerging and diverse roles of EVs in the context of metabolic dysregulation and obesity. Specifically, we aim to highlight the ways in which EVs contribute to systemic inflammation, insulin resistance, lipid imbalance, organ dysfunction, and the progression of obesity-related comorbidities. We welcome original research articles, reviews, and perspectives that explore the following topics:
- Molecular cargo of EVs in obesity: How proteins, lipids, and RNAs (especially microRNAs) within EVs modulate gene expression and signaling in recipient cells.
- EVs and metabolic organ crosstalk: The roles of EVs in transmitting metabolic signals between adipose tissue, liver, muscle, pancreas, the cardiovascular system, and the brain.
- EV-mediated mechanisms in disease progression: Including their involvement in endothelial dysfunction, hepatic steatosis, β-cell failure, myocardial remodeling, and neuroinflammation.
- Therapeutic and diagnostic potential: The use of EVs as non-invasive biomarkers for the early detection of metabolic disease or as vehicles for drug delivery and regenerative therapies.
- Impact of physiological and clinical interventions: How factors such as diet, exercise, aging, and pharmacological treatments influence EV biogenesis, composition, and function.
By consolidating multidisciplinary perspectives, this Special Issue seeks to provide a comprehensive understanding of how EVs shape the pathophysiology of obesity and its complications. Moreover, it aims to foster translational innovation by encouraging work that leverages EV biology for clinical applications in metabolic medicine.
Dr. Mangesh Hade
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- extracellular vesicles
- exosomes
- metabolic syndrome
- obesity
- insulin resistance
- type 2 diabetes
- cardiovascular disease
- MAFLD
- fatty liver
- adipose tissue
- microRNA
- metabolic inflammation
- inter-organ communication
- biomarker
- therapeutic EVs
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