Unlocking the potential of extracellular vesicles in nephrology: what does MISEV2023 add?

Abstract

Extracellular vesicles, small membrane-bound packages secreted by virtually all cells of the body, have become a focus of interest in nephrology over the recent years. After the first characterization of their proteomic and transcriptomic content, the scientific attention shifted toward their potential as biomarkers for kidney diseases both as diagnostic and monitoring tools. More recently, researchers have begun exploring whether extracellular vesicles mediate intercellular signaling inside the nephron and between the kidney and other organs throughout the body. Nevertheless, the field of extracellular vesicle research has struggled to translate major findings to the clinical context due to numerous methods to separate extracellular vesicles, yielding fractions of different sizes and varying purity, unclear terminology, and, hence, limitations concerning reproducibility. The International Society of Extracellular Vesicles, therefore, has striven to reduce these barriers by an ongoing initiative to increase rigor and standardization of extracellular vesicle research. The "Minimal Information for Studies of Extracellular Vesicles" guideline is the result of this initiative and, in its now third iteration, provides the most concise suggestions for investigating extracellular vesicles to date. This mini review illustrates the advances made in extracellular vesicle research in nephrology so far using informative examples, outlines the advances made by the former Minimal Information for Studies of Extracellular Vesicles guidelines, and shows what potential using the latest iteration holds.