Liquid Biopsies (2):

Exosomes
 Exosomes are 30-100 nm microvesicles shed by all cells

• First described in the 1980s

• Both healthy and tumor cells shed exosomes due to unknown reasons
 Contain a sample of cytosolic milieu (DNA, RNA, proteins) but have a different lipid content
 Exosomes are found in most bodily fluids (blood, urine, saliva, breast milk)
 Exosomes can report the presence/identity of a tumor from a “liquid biopsy”
Iero et al., “Tumour-released exosomes and their implications in cancer
immunity”, Cell Death and Differentiation 15: 80 (2008)
The role of exosomes in cancer
 The role of exosomes in promoting metastasis

Martins et al., “Tumor-cell-derived microvesicles as carriers of molecular

information in cancer”, Current Opinion Oncology 25: 66 (2013)
 Microvortex exosome separation

Chen et al. (Irimia’s group), Lab Chip 10: 505 (2010)

 Filtration systems to capture exosomes

R. T. Davies, J. Kim, S. C. Jang, E.-J. Choi, Y. S. Gho and J. Park, Lab Chip 12: 5202 (2012)
 Filtration systems to capture exosomes

 Poor retention of larger particles and proteins

Z. Wang, H.-J. Wu, D. Fine, J. Schmulen, Y. Hu, B. Godin, J. X. J. Zhang and X. Liu, Lab Chip 13:
2879 (2013)
Microfluidic separation of exosomes using immunomagnetic beads

Zhao et al., “A microfluidic ExoSearch chip for multiplexed exosome detection

towards blood-based ovarian cancer diagnosis”, Lab Chip 16: 489 (2016)
 Integrated microfluidic exosome analysis directly from human plasma

He et al., “Integrated immunoisolation and protein analysis of circulating exosomes

using microfluidic technology”, Lab Chip 14: 3773 (2014)