Minimal information for studies of extracellular vesicles 2018 (MISEV2018):a position statement of the International Society for Extracellular Vesicles and update of the MISEV2014 guidelines

The last decade has seen a sharp increase in the number of scientific publications describing physiological and pathological functions of extracellular vesicles (EVs), a collective term covering various subtypes of cell-released, membranous structures, called exosomes, microvesicles, microparticles, ectosomes, oncosomes, apoptotic bodies, and many other names. However, specific issues arise when working with these entities, whose size and amount often make them difficult to obtain as relatively pure preparations, and to characterize properly. The International Society for Extracellular Vesicles (ISEV) proposed Minimal Information for Studies of Extracellular Vesicles ("MISEV") guidelines fo…

Abstracts from the Fourth International Meeting of ISEV, ISEV2015, Washington, D.C., USA, 23-26 April 2015

Non invasive indexes for the assessment of patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) affects about 20%-30% of the general population, and its clinical relevance arises from the fact that 20%-30% of these subjects develop non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a condition at risk of cirrhosis progression. In addition NAFLD, and in particular NASH patients, are also at high risk of cardiovascular alterations, suffering overall from an increased liver and no liver-related events of risk and death. At the moment liver biopsy is the gold standard for a correct evaluation of NASH and fibrosis among NAFLD patients. However, the high and increasing prevalence of NAFLD has triggered an intensive search for alternative and non-invasive methods …

High sCD36 plasma level is associated with steatosis and its severity in patients with genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C

Soluble CD36 (sCD36) plasma levels, a known marker of cardiometabolic disorders, are associated with surrogate markers of steatosis, while experimental and human studies show a link between CD36 expression in the liver and steatosis. In a cohort of patients with genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C (G1 CHC), we tested the association of sCD36 plasma levels with host and viral factors and sustained virological response (SVR). One hundred and seventy-five consecutive biopsy-proven patients were studied. sCD36 plasma levels were assessed by an in-house ELISA. All biopsies were scored by one pathologist for staging and grading (Scheuer) and graded for steatosis, which was considered moderate-severe i…

Circulating exosomes deliver free fatty acids from the bloodstream to cardiac cells: Possible role of CD36

Regulation of circulating free fatty acid (FFA) levels and delivery is crucial to maintain tissue homeostasis. Exosomes are nanomembranous vesicles that are released from diverse cell types and mediate intercellular communication by delivering bioactive molecules. Here, we sought to investigate the uptake of FFAs by circulating exosomes, the delivery of FFA-loaded exosomes to cardiac cells and the possible role of the FFA transporter CD36 in these processes. Circulating exosomes were purified from the serum of healthy donors after an overnight fast (F) or 20 minutes after a high caloric breakfast (postprandial, PP). Western blotting, Immunogold Electron Microscopy and FACS analysis of circu…