FedExosomes (Pt 2)

What happens when communication breaks down?

We saw from Part 1 that the delivery mechanism is indeed a delicate process that is heavily reliant on the targeting abilities of exosomes and good communication. But similar to FedEx package deliveries, poor communication or specificity can lead to detrimental results.

No matter how good the system is, we may have experienced at least one bad delivery. And that could be due to inclement weather, poor traffic and road conditions or simply driver error. So, what does that look like on a cellular level?

One, delivery delays. In neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease or Parkinson’s disease, the logistics chain breaks down. The roads are blocked or destroyed making travel much more difficult. The exosomes, or ‘package’ has protective proteins, but it is delayed or possibly intercepted. In this scenario, the neurons, or the ‘recipient’, failed to receive the repair instructions, thus leading to continued destruction and eventual decay.

Two, damaged goods. The exosomes, or ‘package’, could be tampered. The contents could have been switched to send a message to ‘stop fighting’ to immune cells that needed to fight. In this case, the delivery system was hijacked and paved the way for further tumor growth.

Three, misrouting. The surface marker, or ‘shipping label’, of an exosome is a vital piece in ensuring that it is delivered to the correct address. But what if the label changed? What if the surface marker mutated? The exosome, or ‘package’ might be delivered to the wrong address leading to unwanted effects. It could also simply not be recognized, leading to a package with important information being left on the doorstep.

Proper communication and specificity is the backbone of the delivery mechanism and as such, changes can lead to detrimental effects such as imbalance, destruction and decay.

The good news is that this hurdle can be overcome with improved targeting capabilities through enhanced surface markers creating a stronger delivery system.

But there is one hurdle that continues to prove difficult…