Engineered platelet-derived exosomal spheres for enhanced tumor penetration and extended circulation in melanoma immunotherapy

Cells and exosomes derived from them are extensively used as biological carrier systems. Cells demonstrate superior targeting specificity and prolonged circulation facilitated by their rich array of surface proteins, while exosomes, due to their small size, cross barriers and penetrate tumors effici...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Jian Zhao, Xinyan Lv, Qi Lu, Kaiyuan Wang, Lili Du, Xiaoyuan Fan, Fei Sun, Fengxiang Liu, Zhonggui He, Hao Ye, Jin Sun
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-07-01
Series:Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211383525002667
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849467216754376704
author Jian Zhao
Xinyan Lv
Qi Lu
Kaiyuan Wang
Lili Du
Xiaoyuan Fan
Fei Sun
Fengxiang Liu
Zhonggui He
Hao Ye
Jin Sun
author_facet Jian Zhao
Xinyan Lv
Qi Lu
Kaiyuan Wang
Lili Du
Xiaoyuan Fan
Fei Sun
Fengxiang Liu
Zhonggui He
Hao Ye
Jin Sun
author_sort Jian Zhao
collection DOAJ
description Cells and exosomes derived from them are extensively used as biological carrier systems. Cells demonstrate superior targeting specificity and prolonged circulation facilitated by their rich array of surface proteins, while exosomes, due to their small size, cross barriers and penetrate tumors efficiently. However, challenges remain, cells’ large size restricts tissue penetration, and exosomes have limited targeting accuracy and short circulation times. To address these challenges, we developed a novel concept termed exosomal spheres. This approach involved incorporating platelet-derived exosomes shielded with phosphatidylserine (PS) and linked via pH-sensitive bonds for drug delivery applications. The study demonstrated that, compared with exosomes, the exosomal spheres improved blood circulation through the upregulation of CD47 expression and shielding of phosphatidylserine, thereby minimizing immune clearance. Moreover, the increased expression of P-selectin promoted adhesion to circulating tumor cells, thereby enhancing targeting efficiency. Upon reaching the tumor site, the hydrazone bonds of exosome spheres were protonated in the acidic tumor microenvironment, leading to disintegration into uniform-sized exosomes capable of deeper tumor penetration compared to platelets. These findings suggested that exosome spheres addressed the challenges and offered significant potential for efficient and precise drug delivery.
format Article
id doaj-art-87d9808f72584130a00818d76f2fe64b
institution Kabale University
issn 2211-3835
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B
spelling doaj-art-87d9808f72584130a00818d76f2fe64b2025-08-20T03:28:25ZengElsevierActa Pharmaceutica Sinica B2211-38352025-07-011573756376610.1016/j.apsb.2025.04.013Engineered platelet-derived exosomal spheres for enhanced tumor penetration and extended circulation in melanoma immunotherapyJian Zhao0Xinyan Lv1Qi Lu2Kaiyuan Wang3Lili Du4Xiaoyuan Fan5Fei Sun6Fengxiang Liu7Zhonggui He8Hao Ye9Jin Sun10Department of Pharmaceutics, Wuya College of Innovation, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, ChinaSchool of Traditional Chinese Materia Medica, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, ChinaDepartment of Pharmaceutics, Wuya College of Innovation, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, ChinaDepartment of Pharmaceutics, Wuya College of Innovation, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, ChinaDepartment of Pharmaceutics, Wuya College of Innovation, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, ChinaDepartment of Pharmaceutics, Wuya College of Innovation, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, ChinaDepartment of Pharmaceutics, Wuya College of Innovation, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, ChinaDepartment of Pharmaceutics, Wuya College of Innovation, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, ChinaDepartment of Pharmaceutics, Wuya College of Innovation, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, ChinaMulti-Scale Robotics Lab (MSRL), Institute of Robotics & Intelligent Systems (IRIS), ETH Zurich, Zurich 8092, Switzerland; Corresponding authors.Department of Pharmaceutics, Wuya College of Innovation, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, China; Corresponding authors.Cells and exosomes derived from them are extensively used as biological carrier systems. Cells demonstrate superior targeting specificity and prolonged circulation facilitated by their rich array of surface proteins, while exosomes, due to their small size, cross barriers and penetrate tumors efficiently. However, challenges remain, cells’ large size restricts tissue penetration, and exosomes have limited targeting accuracy and short circulation times. To address these challenges, we developed a novel concept termed exosomal spheres. This approach involved incorporating platelet-derived exosomes shielded with phosphatidylserine (PS) and linked via pH-sensitive bonds for drug delivery applications. The study demonstrated that, compared with exosomes, the exosomal spheres improved blood circulation through the upregulation of CD47 expression and shielding of phosphatidylserine, thereby minimizing immune clearance. Moreover, the increased expression of P-selectin promoted adhesion to circulating tumor cells, thereby enhancing targeting efficiency. Upon reaching the tumor site, the hydrazone bonds of exosome spheres were protonated in the acidic tumor microenvironment, leading to disintegration into uniform-sized exosomes capable of deeper tumor penetration compared to platelets. These findings suggested that exosome spheres addressed the challenges and offered significant potential for efficient and precise drug delivery.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211383525002667Biological carrier systemsExosome spheresPhosphatidylserineCD47Prolong blood circulation timeP-selectin
spellingShingle Jian Zhao
Xinyan Lv
Qi Lu
Kaiyuan Wang
Lili Du
Xiaoyuan Fan
Fei Sun
Fengxiang Liu
Zhonggui He
Hao Ye
Jin Sun
Engineered platelet-derived exosomal spheres for enhanced tumor penetration and extended circulation in melanoma immunotherapy
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B
Biological carrier systems
Exosome spheres
Phosphatidylserine
CD47
Prolong blood circulation time
P-selectin
title Engineered platelet-derived exosomal spheres for enhanced tumor penetration and extended circulation in melanoma immunotherapy
title_full Engineered platelet-derived exosomal spheres for enhanced tumor penetration and extended circulation in melanoma immunotherapy
title_fullStr Engineered platelet-derived exosomal spheres for enhanced tumor penetration and extended circulation in melanoma immunotherapy
title_full_unstemmed Engineered platelet-derived exosomal spheres for enhanced tumor penetration and extended circulation in melanoma immunotherapy
title_short Engineered platelet-derived exosomal spheres for enhanced tumor penetration and extended circulation in melanoma immunotherapy
title_sort engineered platelet derived exosomal spheres for enhanced tumor penetration and extended circulation in melanoma immunotherapy
topic Biological carrier systems
Exosome spheres
Phosphatidylserine
CD47
Prolong blood circulation time
P-selectin
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211383525002667
work_keys_str_mv AT jianzhao engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy
AT xinyanlv engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy
AT qilu engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy
AT kaiyuanwang engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy
AT lilidu engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy
AT xiaoyuanfan engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy
AT feisun engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy
AT fengxiangliu engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy
AT zhongguihe engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy
AT haoye engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy
AT jinsun engineeredplateletderivedexosomalspheresforenhancedtumorpenetrationandextendedcirculationinmelanomaimmunotherapy