Advances in the research of exosomes in renal cell carcinoma: from mechanisms to applications

Front Immunol. 2023 Oct 24:14:1271669. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1271669. eCollection 2023.

Abstract

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is one of the most malignant urological tumors. Currently, there is a lack of molecular markers for early diagnosis of RCC. The 5-year survival rate for early-stage RCC is generally favorable; however, the prognosis takes a significant downturn when the tumor progresses to distant metastasis. Therefore, the identification of molecular markers for RCC is crucial in enhancing early diagnosis rates. Exosomes are a type of extracellular vesicle (EV) typically ranging in size from 30 nm to 150 nm, which contain RNA, DNA, proteins, lipids, etc. They can impact neighboring receptor cells through the autocrine or paracrine pathway, influence cellular communication, and regulate the local immune cells, consequently shaping the tumor immune microenvironment and closely associating with tumor development. The clinical application of exosomes as tumor markers and therapeutic targets has ignited significant interest within the research community. This review aims to provide a comprehensive summary of the advancements in exosome research within the context of RCC.

Keywords: extracellular vesicles; lipid biopsy; renal cell carcinoma; tumor biomarkers; tumor-derived exosomes.

Publication types

  • Review
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Biomarkers, Tumor / metabolism
  • Carcinoma, Renal Cell* / pathology
  • Exosomes* / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Kidney Neoplasms* / pathology
  • Proteins / metabolism
  • Tumor Microenvironment

Substances

  • Biomarkers, Tumor
  • Proteins

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81972379, 82173216, 81872083, and 81972380), the Capital Health Research and Development of Special Fund (2022-1-4072), the Clinical Features Research of Capital (Z211100002921070), Clinical Medicine Plus X—Young Scholars Project, Peking University, the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (PKU2021LCXQ026), and Wuxi “Taihu Talents Program” Medical and Health High-level Talents Project.