Technical Aspects for the Evaluation of Exosomes and Their Content

Abstract

Liquid biopsy is a precious source of exosomes, nanometer-sized vesicles (40–100 nm diameter) that play a relevant role in the cell-cell communication, strongly depending on the nature of the transported molecules (proteins, mRNAs, miRNAs, and lipids). Since a significant body of literature has demonstrated that exosomes released by cancer cells carry tumor-specific RNAs and proteins, they are widely considered very attractive targets for diagnostic application. This chapter focuses on the isolation and study of exosomes from liquid biopsies and summarizes the recent exosomal miRNA and protein profiling data supporting the potential role of tumor-derived exosomes as biomarkers and their potential application in clinical settings.