Neuronally derived extracellular vesicles: an emerging tool for understanding Alzheimer’s disease

In order for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) to manifest, cells must communicate “pathogenic material” such as proteins, signaling molecules, or genetic material to ensue disease propagation. Small extracellular vesicles are produced via the endocytic pathways and released by nearly all cell types, including neurons. Due to their intrinsic interrelationship with endocytic processes and autophagy, there has been increased interest in studying the role of these neuronally-derived extracellular vesicles (NDEVs) in the propagation of AD. Pathologic cargo associated with AD have been found in a number of studies, and NDEVs have been shown to induce pathogenesis in vivo and in vitro. Exogenous NDEVs are also shown to reduce plaque burden in AD models. Thus, the NDEV has the potential to become a useful biomarker, a pathologic potentiator, and a therapeutic opportunity. While the field of NDEV research in AD is still in its infancy, we review the current literature supporting these three claims. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s13024-019-0317-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.