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Size matters in nanoscale communication

Nature Cell Biology volume 20, pages 228–230 (2018)Cite this article

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Exosomes are heterogeneous, nanoscale vesicles that mediate cellular communication. A study now leverages a size separation strategy to identify sub-classes of nanoparticles, revealing a subtype without an encapsulating membrane and variation in vesicle cargo, suggesting that size is not the only driver of heterogeneity.

Extracellular vesicles, of which exosomes represent one nanoscale subpopulation1, have been recognized as bona fide promoters of cancer progression because they function as mediators of communication between the cell of origin and adjacent cells, as well as distant tissues1,2. The underpinnings of this mechanism of communication and the nature of what is being communicated have been under intense investigation over the past five years. An active and specialized role for cancer-derived extracellular vesicles in tumour progression has been confirmed, which includes communication with and transfer of active biomolecules to the tumour microenvironment3. In addition, a functional role for extracellular-vesicle cargo sorting in disease progression has been demonstrated and the mechanism revealed4. The inhibition of exosome secretion or biogenesis also leads to defective tumour cell migration5, suggesting that the tumour-promoting function of extracellular vesicles can be therapeutically targeted3,6.

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Fig. 1: Schematic representation of vesicle subpopulations that comprise the cellular communication milieu.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA

    Andries Zijlstra

  2. Program in Cancer Biology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA

    Andries Zijlstra

  3. Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Dolores Di Vizio

  4. Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Dolores Di Vizio

  5. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Dolores Di Vizio

Authors
  1. Andries Zijlstra
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  2. Dolores Di Vizio
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Correspondence to Dolores Di Vizio.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Zijlstra, A., Di Vizio, D. Size matters in nanoscale communication. Nat Cell Biol 20, 228–230 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41556-018-0049-8

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