bims-exocan Biomed News
on Exosomes roles in cancer
Issue of 2025–03–02
six papers selected by
Muhammad Rizwan, COMSATS University
  1. Deregulation of Exosomal miR-17, miR-20a and TGFBR2 in Head and Neck Cancer Patients.
  2. Cancer-secreted exosomal miR-1825 induces angiogenesis to promote colorectal cancer metastasis.
  3. Extracellular vesicles and microRNAs in cancer progression.
  4. TAM-derived exosomal miR-589-3p accelerates ovarian cancer progression through BCL2L13.
  5. Role of circular RNAs in cancer therapy resistance.
  6. Exosome-Based Theranostic for Gastrointestinal Cancer: Advances in Biomarker Discovery and Therapeutic Engineering.
  1. Technol Cancer Res Treat. 2025 Jan-Dec;24:24 15330338251323314
    Deregulation of Exosomal miR-17, miR-20a and TGFBR2 in Head and Neck Cancer Patients.
    Muhammad Rizwan, Ishrat Mahjabeen, Muhammad Shahbaz Haris, Fouzia Qayyum, Mahmood Akhtar Kayani.
      Introduction: Exosomes play significant roles in transferring cargo materials like proteins, RNAs (including miRNAs), and DNA. However, the role of serum exosome shuttled RNAs and miRNAs in head and neck cancer (HNC) remains unclear. This study assessed the diagnostic and prognostic significance of exosomal miR-17, miR-20a, and TGFBR2 in HNC patients. Methods: Exosomes were isolated, from 400 confirmed HNC patients and 400 healthy controls, and characterized by NTA, TEM, Immunolabelling, and ELISA. Quantitative PCR was used to check the expressions of exosomal molecules. Oxidative stress was also measured through ELISA in cancer patients and healthy controls. Results: Data analysis revealed significant dysregulation in the expressional levels of miR-17 (p < .0001), miR-20a (p = .0003), and TGFBR2 (p = .0005), which were found associated with aggressiveness and poor survival of HNC patients. Spearman correlation revealed a positive statistically significant association between miR-20a versus miR-17 (r = 0.534; p < .01), while a negative correlation was found between TGFBR2 versus miR-17 (r = -0.240; p = .015). Significantly decreased levels of peroxidase (POD) (p < .0001) and an increased level of 8-Oxoguanine (p < .0001) were observed. Conclusion: The results showed that these exosomal miRNAs and target gene may serve as potential and noninvasive diagnostic and prognostic markers for head and neck cancer patients.
    Keywords:  TGFBR2; biomarker; exosome; head and neck cancer; miR-17; miR-20a; miRNA-17-92 cluster
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1177/15330338251323314
  2. Cancer Cell Int. 2025 Feb 22. 25(1): 63
    Cancer-secreted exosomal miR-1825 induces angiogenesis to promote colorectal cancer metastasis.
    Jingbo Sun, Junjie Luo, Jialong Liu, Hongmei Wu, Yanyan Li, Yangwei Xu, Lixin Liu, Xiaolong Liu, Qingling Zhang.
       BACKGROUND: Angiogenesis is one of the important factors related to tumorigenesis, invasion, and metastasis. Cancer-secreted exosomes are essential mediators of intercellular cross-talk and participate in angiogenesis and metastasis. Unveiling the mechanism of angiogenesis is an important way to develop anti-angiogenesis therapeutic strategies to against cancer progression.
    METHODS: miR-1825 expression and relationship with microvascular density were validated in colorectal cancer (CRC) by in situ hybridization (ISH) staining and immunohistochemistry (IHC). Sequential differential centrifugation, transmission electron microscopy, and western blotting analysis were used to extract and characterize exosomes. The effort of exosomal miR-1825 on endothelial cells was examined by transwell assay, wound healing assay, tube formation assay, and aortic ring assay. The relationship of miR-1825, ING1 and the downstream pathway were analyzed by western blot, RT-PCR, Immunofluorescence, and dual-luciferase reporter system analysis.
    RESULTS: Exosomal miR-1825 is associated with angiogenesis in CRC and is enriched in exosomes extracted from the serum of CRC patients. The CRC-secreted exosomal miR-1825 can be transferred into vascular endothelial cells, promoting endothelial cell migration and tube formation in vitro, and facilitating angiogenesis and tumor metastasis in vivo. Mechanistically, exosomal miR-1825 regulates angiogenesis and tumor metastasis by suppressing inhibitor of growth family member 1 (ING1) and activating the TGF-β/Smad2/Smad3 signaling pathway in the recipient HUVECs.
    CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrated the CRC-secreted exosomal miR-1825 could be transferred to vascular endothelial cells, subsequently leads to the inhibition of ING1 and the activation of the TGF-β/Smad2/Smad3 signaling pathway, thereby promoting angiogenesis and liver metastasis in CRC. Exosomal miR-1825 is thus a potential diagnostic and therapeutic target for CRC patients.
    Keywords:  Angiogenesis; Colorectal cancer; Exosomes; ING1; miR-1825
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1186/s12935-025-03674-5
  3. Adv Clin Chem. 2025 ;pii: S0065-2423(24)00135-5. [Epub ahead of print]125 23-54
    Extracellular vesicles and microRNAs in cancer progression.
    Nicola S Orefice, Gianluca Petrillo, Claudia Pignataro, Martina Mascolo, Giada De Luca, Sara Verde, Francesca Pentimalli, Gerolama Condorelli, Cristina Quintavalle.
      Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as critical mediators of intercellular communication in cancer. These membranous structures, secreted by normal and cancerous cells, carry a cargo of bioactive molecules including microRNAs (miRNAs) that modulate various cellular processes. miRNAs are small non-coding RNAs that play pivotal roles in post-transcriptional gene regulation and have been implicated in cancer initiation, progression, and metastasis. In cancer, tumor-derived EVs transport specific miRNAs to recipient cells, modulating tumorigenesis, growth, angiogenesis, and metastasis. Dysregulation of miRNA expression profiles within EVs contributes to the acquisition of cancer hallmarks that include increased proliferation, survival, and migration. EV miRNAs influence the tumor microenvironment, promoting immune evasion, remodeling the extracellular matrix, and establishing pre-metastatic niches. Understanding the complex interplay between EVs, miRNAs, and cancer holds significant promise for developing novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. This chapter provides insights into the role of EV-mediated miRNA signaling in cancer pathogenesis, highlighting its potential as a biomarker for cancer detection, prognosis, and treatment response assessment.
    Keywords:  Biomarkers; Cancer; Cancer-associated fibroblasts; Diagnosis; Exosome; Extracellular vesicles; MicroRNA; MicroRNA quantification; Therapy; Tumor microenvironment; chemoterapy; exo-miRs; metastasis
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.acc.2024.11.004
  4. J Ovarian Res. 2025 Feb 21. 18(1): 36
    TAM-derived exosomal miR-589-3p accelerates ovarian cancer progression through BCL2L13.
    Jianqing Wang, Yan Zhu, Yang He, Weiwei Shao.
       BACKGROUND: Tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) are critical elements of intercellular communication in tumor microenvironment (TME), and exosomes are key mediators between tumor cells and the TME. According to previous reports, miRNAs exert a pivotal role in ovarian cancer (OC) development. The purpose of this work was to explore the function of TAM-derived exosomal miR-589-3p in OC development and elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms.
    METHODS: First, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were treated with IL-4 and IL-13 to polarize them into M2-type macrophages. Exosomes were separated from M2-type macrophages, and the physical properties of exosomes were evaluated using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA). Next, quantitative reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was applied to examine the expression of relevant genes. Subsequently, Targetscan and miRDB were utilized to predict miR-589-3p target genes, and then the interaction between miR-589-3p and BCL2L13 was verified by dual luciferase assay and RNA Binding Protein Immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay. Finally, Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) and flow cytometry experiments were employed to explore the changes in the proliferative and apoptotic abilities of OC cells.
    RESULTS: In this research, we demonstrated that TAM-derived exosomes facilitated OC cell proliferation and suppressed OC cell apoptosis. Then, qRT-PCR results indicated that miR-589-3p were markedly elevated after co-culture of TAM-derived exosomes with OC cells. In addition, we discovered that miR-589-3p was bound to BCL-2-like protein 13 (BCL2L13), which was confirmed through luciferase assay and RIP assay. Furthermore, functional analysis displayed that TAM-derived exosomes treated with miR-589-3p inhibitor attenuated the promotion of OC cell progression by exosomes.
    CONCLUSION: TAM-derived exosomal miR-589-3p enhanced OC progression through BCL2L13, which offers a novel for OC therapy.
    Keywords:  BCL2L13; Exosome; OC; TAM; miR-589-3p
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1186/s13048-025-01618-1
  5. Mol Cancer. 2025 Feb 25. 24(1): 55
    Role of circular RNAs in cancer therapy resistance.
    Wenjuan Liu, Jiling Niu, Yanfei Huo, Long Zhang, Linyu Han, Nasha Zhang, Ming Yang.
      Over the past decade, circular RNAs (circRNAs) have gained recognition as a novel class of genetic molecules, many of which are implicated in cancer pathogenesis via different mechanisms, including drug resistance, immune escape, and radio-resistance. ExosomalcircRNAs, in particular, facilitatecommunication between tumour cells and micro-environmental cells, including immune cells, fibroblasts, and other components. Notably, micro-environmental cells can reportedly influence tumour progression and treatment resistance by releasing exosomalcircRNAs. circRNAs often exhibit tissue- and cancer-specific expression patterns, and growing evidence highlights their potential clinical relevance and utility. These molecules show strong promise as potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for cancer diagnosis and treatment. Therefore, this review aimed to briefly discuss the latest findings on the roles and resistance mechanisms of key circRNAs in the treatment of various malignancies, including lung, breast, liver, colorectal, and gastric cancers, as well as haematological malignancies and neuroblastoma.This review will contribute to the identification of new circRNA biomarkers for the early diagnosis as well as therapeutic targets for the treatment of cancer.
    Keywords:  Circular RNAs; Drug resistance; Exosome; Radioresistance; Tumour immunity
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1186/s12943-025-02254-5
  6. Small Methods. 2025 Feb 25. e2402058
    Exosome-Based Theranostic for Gastrointestinal Cancer: Advances in Biomarker Discovery and Therapeutic Engineering.
    Mohit J Mehta, Dongjun Shin, Hyun Sung Park, Jun Su An, Seong Il Lim, Hyun Jin Kim, Seungpyo Hong, Jiyoon Bu.
      Exosomes have emerged as versatile biomolecules in gastrointestinal (GI) cancer management, leveraging their inherent cargo-carrying capabilities to overcome the limitations of current diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. This review provides a comprehensive exploration of exosome-based technologies, highlighting their dual roles as diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic vehicles. On the diagnostic front, this review investigates specific exosomal biomarkers-including miRNAs, lncRNAs, circRNAs, and proteins-emphasizing their roles in tumor biology and their clinical utility, such as diagnostic accuracy, early detection potential, and prognostic significance. Therapeutically, this study examines the sources, purification methodologies, and engineering strategies that enhance the therapeutic efficacy of exosomes in modulating immune responses, overcoming drug resistance, and suppressing metastasis. By providing a comprehensive overview of the field, this review serves as a guideline for researchers and clinicians entering this field, offering novel insights into the potential of exosome-based theranostic systems and delineating future directions to overcome existing challenges.
    Keywords:  exosomal biomarkers; exosome engineering; exosomes; extracellular vesicles; gastrointestinal cancer
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1002/smtd.202402058
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