Extracellular Vesicle Biomarkers for Diagnosis of Cardiovascular Diseases

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality worldwide. There is an urgent need for early detection biomarkers, which will benefit patients in the early stages of the disease, prior to the occurrence of obvious clinical symptoms. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) carry specific parental cell-derived cargo that reflects physiological and pathological features; thus, EVs may represent diagnostic biomarkers. As key mediators of intercellular communication, EVs play active roles in the initiation and progression of cardiovascular lesions. The amounts and contents of EVs change significantly under different pathological conditions in patients with CVD. Emerging evidences from clinical research and experimental studies have provided exciting insights into the use of EV-based diagnostic biomarkers in vascular diseases, heart diseases, and cardiovascular-related diseases, paving the way for further clinical applications. It will not be long before EVs can be used as diagnostic biomarkers in the field of CVDs.