• Special Issue Topic

    Extracellular Vesicles in Liver Diseases: Their Role in Pathogenesis and Their Application as Biomarkers and Therapeutic Agents

    Submission Deadline: September 30, 2024

    Guest Editor

    Prof. Han Moshage E-Mail

    Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands

    Research Keywords: chronic liver diseases, apoptosis, necrosis, lipotoxicity, fatty liver diseases, oxidative stress, signal transduction, fibrosis, inflammation, hepatocytes, Kupffer cells, stellate cells


    About the Special Issue

    Interest in extracellular vesicles or exosomes has grown dramatically in recent years. Extracellular vesicles are membrane-surrounded vesicles that are actively released from cells and impact on other cells and tissues in the body. Extracellular vesicles contain a vast array of biologically active molecules such as proteins, lipids and nucleic acids, including (mi)RNAs. The cargo of extracellular vesicles is delivered to target cells, both in the proximity of the releasing cells, as well as to distant cells via the circulation. Therefore, extracellular vesicles play an important role in intercellular communication.

    The content of the vesicles is dependent on the ‘health status’ of the cell: ‘healthy’ cells release vesicles with a different content compared to vesicles released from ‘diseased’ cells. Therefore, extracellular vesicles may not only be used as biomarkers, but may also yield novel insights in the pathogenesis of diseases. Extracellular vesicles also play an important role in intercellular communication and pathogenesis of liver diseases, e.g. metabolic dysfunction associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) and liver cancer.

    In this Special Issue of the journal Exploration of Digestive Diseases, we welcome contributions that shed light on the role of extracellular vesicles in liver diseases. These contributions can be reviews, original research, comments and methodological notes and will cover the entire spectrum from the role of extracellular vesicles in pathogenesis of liver disease to the characterization of their content (proteomics, RNA sequencing), their application as biomarkers in clinical practice and as vehicles for drug delivery.

    Keywords: extracellular vesicles, exosomes, liver diseases, biomarkers, proteomics, miRNA, RNA sequencing, metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease

    Call for Papers

    Published Articles

    Open Access
    Original Article
    Optimization of protocols for blood-derived extracellular vesicles for studies in liver diseases
    Aim: Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have gained significant attention for their diagnostic and therapeutic potential in various diseases, including liver disorders. This study focuses on optimizing [...] Read more.
    Magnolia Martínez-Aguilar ... Han Moshage
    Published: April 28, 2024 Explor Dig Dis. 2024;3:143–162
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.37349/edd.2024.00044
    View:1335
    Download:41
    Times Cited: 0
    Open Access
    Original Article
    Human liver stem cell-derived extracellular vesicles modulate long non-coding RNA expression profile in an in vivo model of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis
    Aim: Modifications in long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) expression are associated with inflammation and fibrosis in chronic liver diseases. It has been recently demonstrated that human liver stem cell [...] Read more.
    Giulia Chiabotto ... Stefania Bruno
    Published: August 30, 2023 Explor Dig Dis. 2023;2:172–187
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.37349/edd.2023.00025
    View:1273
    Download:41