Therapeutic miRNA-Enriched Extracellular Vesicles: Current Approaches and Future Prospects

Abstract

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are 50–300 nm vesicles secreted by eukaryotic cells. They can carry cargo (including miRNA) from the donor cell to the recipient cell. miRNAs in EVs can change the translational profile of the recipient cell and modulate cellular morphology. This endogenous mechanism has attracted the attention of the drug-delivery community in the last few years. EVs can be enriched with exogenous therapeutic miRNAs and used for treatment of diseases by targeting pathological recipient cells. However, there are some obstacles that need to be addressed before introducing therapeutic miRNA-enriched EVs in clinics. Here, we focused on the progress in the field of therapeutic miRNA enriched EVs, highlighted important areas where research is needed, and discussed the potential to use them as therapeutic miRNA carriers in the future.