Emerging role of extracellular vesicles in the respiratory system

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) present numerous biomedical ways of studying disease and pathology. They function as protective packaging for the delivery of controlled concentrations of miRNAs and effector molecules, including cytokines, chemokines, genetic material, and small signaling molecules. Previous studies of EVs have yielded valuable insights into pathways of intercellular communication that affect a variety of biological processes and disease responses. The roles of EVs, specifically microRNA-containing EVs (EV-miRNAs), in either mitigating or exacerbating pulmonary disease symptoms are numerous and show promise in helping us understand pulmonary disease pathology. Because of their well-documented involvement in pulmonary diseases, EVs show promise both as possible diagnostic biomarkers and as therapeutic agents. This review surveys the physiological functions of EVs in the respiratory system and outlines the pulmonary disease states in which EVs are involved in intercellular crosstalk. This review also discusses the potential clinical applications of EV-miRNAs in pulmonary diseases.