Fig. 4
From: Extracellular vesicles, from the pathogenesis to the therapy of neurodegenerative diseases
The therapeutic effects of engineered EVs on NDs.
EVs have been utilized as a drug delivery platform for the treatment of NDs. Therapeutic cargos including shRNA/siRNA/miRNAs that target ND-related genes, mRNAs that express Aβ degradation enzymes, and therapeutic drugs can be specifically loaded into EVs via transfection or physical strategies. Moreover, through being decorated with RVG, mannose, or PDGFA on the surface, EVs are further conferred targeting capacity to the CNS, microglia, and OPCs, respectively. These engineered EVs reach their target cells to facilitate Aβ clearance, mitigate oxidative stress, protect neuronal cells, inhibit neuroglial activation, promote remyelination, and restore BBB integrity, thus alleviating behavioral phenotypes of ND animal models