Exosomes as a modulator of immune resistance in human cancers

Abstract

<p>In the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/tumor-microenvironment" title="Learn more about tumor microenvironment from ScienceDirect's AI-generated Topic Pages">tumor microenvironment</a> (TME), <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/exosome" title="Learn more about exosomes from ScienceDirect's AI-generated Topic Pages">exosomes</a> secreted by cells form interactive networks between the tumor cells and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/immunocompetent-cell" title="Learn more about immune cells from ScienceDirect's AI-generated Topic Pages">immune cells</a>, thereby regulating immune signaling cascades in the TME. As key messengers of cell-to-cell communication in the TME, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/exosome" title="Learn more about exosomes from ScienceDirect's AI-generated Topic Pages">exosomes</a> not only take charge of <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/tumor-antigen" title="Learn more about tumor cell antigen from ScienceDirect's AI-generated Topic Pages">tumor cell antigen</a> presentation to the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/immunocompetent-cell" title="Learn more about immune cells from ScienceDirect's AI-generated Topic Pages">immune cells</a>, but also regulate the activities of immune cells, inhibit immune function, and, especially, promote immune resistance, all of which affects the therapeutic outcomes of tumors. Exosomes, which are small-sized vesicles, possess some remarkable advantages, including strong biological activity, a lack of <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/immunogenicity" title="Learn more about immunogenicity from ScienceDirect's AI-generated Topic Pages">immunogenicity</a> and toxicity, and a strong targeting ability. Based on these characteristics, research on exosomes as biomarkers or carriers of tumor therapeutic <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/chemotherapeutic-agent" title="Learn more about drugs from ScienceDirect's AI-generated Topic Pages">drugs</a> has become a research hotspot in related fields. This review describes the role of exosomes in cell communications in the TME, summarizes the effectiveness of exosome-based <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/immunology-and-microbiology/immunotherapy" title="Learn more about immunotherapy from ScienceDirect's AI-generated Topic Pages">immunotherapy</a> in overcoming immune resistance in cancer treatment, and systematically summarizes and discusses the characteristics of exosomes from different cell sources. Furthermore, the prospects and challenges of exosome-related therapies are discussed.<br></p>