International Journal of Molecular Sciences

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Dear Colleagues,

Intercellular communication is of fundamental importance for biological processes such as differentiation and patterning. Extracellular vesicles (EVs), constantly produced by various cells of the body, are considered to be important players in intercellular communication. They are not only involved in hemostasis and immune regulation but also contribute to pathophysiological processes such as inflammation and cancer progression. Based on their cellular origin, EVs can be classified as exosomes, ectosomes with various subgroups, and apoptotic bodies. All of these might carry bioactive molecules including DNA, RNA, proteins, and lipids that can be delivered to the target cell upon successful binding and uptake, thus enabling them to play a crucial role in cell–cell communication.

There are several different ways that EVs interact with the recipient cell including receptor-ligand recognition, fusion, and phagocytosis. Much research has been done on EVs, as shown by the more than 3,600 citations with this term in the title in PubMed in 2021; however, how they recognize and interact with the recipient cell still remains vague.

In order to get a better understanding of the role and mode of action of EVs in cell–cell communication, we are announcing a Special Issue on this topic with a focus on inflammatory processes, coagulation, and cancer. We warmly invite experts to contribute articles reporting original scientific research with novel insights as well as reviews.

Prof. Dr. Frank Gieseler
Dr. Fanny Ender
Guest Editors

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Related Special Issues

Published Papers (1 paper)

Research

16 pages, 2723 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Different Contribution of Monocyte- and Platelet-Derived Microvesicles to Endothelial Behavior

by Marta Brambilla, Maria Talmon, Paola Canzano, Luigia G. Fresu, Sandra Brunelleschi, Elena Tremoli and Marina Camera

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(9), 4811; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23094811 - 27 Apr 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1841

Abstract

Several contributions of circulating microvesicles (MVs) to the endothelial dysfunction have been reported in the past; a head-to-head comparison of platelet- and monocyte–derived MVs has however never been performed. To this aim, we assessed the involvement of these MVs in vessel damage related processes, i.e., oxidative stress, inflammation, and leukocyte-endothelial adhesion. Platelets and monocytes isolated from healthy subjects (HS, n = 15) were stimulated with TRAP-6 and LPS to release MVs that were added to human vascular endothelial cell (hECV) culture to evaluate superoxide anion production, inflammatory markers (IL-6, TNFα, NF-κB mRNA expression), and hECV adhesiveness. The effects of the MVs-induced from HS were compared to those induced by MVs spontaneously released from cells of patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI, n = 7). MVs released by HS-activated cells triggered a threefold increase in oxidative burst in a concentration-dependent manner. Only MVs released from monocytes doubled IL-6, TNFα, and NF-κB mRNA expression and monocyte-endothelial adhesion. Interestingly, the effects of the MVs isolated from STEMI-monocytes were not superimposable to previous ones except for adhesion to hECV. Conversely, MVs released from STEMI-platelets sustained both redox state and inflammatory phenotype. These data provide evidence that MVs released from activated and/or pathologic platelets and monocytes differently affect endothelial behavior, highlighting platelet-MVs as causative factors of impaired endothelial function in the acute phase of STEMI. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extracellular Vesicles and Cell–Cell Communication 2.0)

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