Exosome Untargeted Metabolomics Analysis Service

Exosome (EX) is a heterogeneous group of extracellular vesicle (EV) with size similar to viruses (30-150 nm). Many different cell types, including red blood cells, B cells, T cells, mast cells, platelets, endothelial cells, fibroblasts, adipocytes, epithelial cells, muscle, dendritic cells, and tumor cells, can release EX. The heterogeneous vesicle is exclusively formed by the fusion of multivesicular bady formed by the inward budding of the endosomal membrane with the plasma membrane, which are then released into the extracellular environment. They are present in extracellular culture mediums (in vitro) and bodily fluids (in vivo), such as blood, urine, saliva, breast milk, ascitic fluid, nasal secretions, tears, amniotic fluid, synovial fluid, lymph, cerebrospinal fluid, and semen. In both normal and pathological states, EX plays a crucial role in intercellular communication by reaching receptor cells in the local environment (paracrine mode) or being transported to distant tissues through the circulation system (endocrine mode). In recent years, metabolomics studies on EX present in EV have gradually started, and research interest in the metabolome of EX has been growing.

 



de la Torre Gomez, C. et al. Front Genet. 2018.

Figure 1. Exosome Untargeted Metabolomics

 

Existing data indicate that the lipid composition of EX originating from different cells shows significant differences. For example, ceramides are enriched in EXs produced by tumor cells but are absent in those from red blood cells. Research on the complete metabololites present in EXs is still limited, and the exosomal metabolome includes not only lipids but also amino acids, organic acids, cyclitols, carnitines, aromatic compounds, vitamins, carbohydrates and their derivatives, as well as nucleosides and nucleotides.

 

EX plays a significant role in the communication between cancer cells and cancer microenvironment. Studies have shown that EXs released by cancer cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) can regulate the metabolism of cancer cells. When cancer cells are cultured in the presence of EVs produced by CAFs from prostate cancer (PCa) patients, their mitochondrial activity is downregulated, and glucose uptake and glycolysis are increased. The rise in pyruvate and lactate levels is associated with a decrease in tetrahydrofolic acid, malic acid, α-ketoglutarate, and glutamic acid levels. This confirms that EVs originating from CAFs stimulate the Warburg effect in the receptor cancer cells. The main components of the EVs metabolome are the main components of the membrane: glycerophospholipids and sphingolipids, fatty acid esters, amides and alcohols, nucleotides and derivatives, amino acids and arachidonic acids, steroids and isoprenoids.

 

MtoZ Biolabs uses Thermo's latest Obitrap Fusion Lumos mass spectrometer combined with nanoLC-MS/MS nanoscale chromatography to provide exosome untargeted metabolomics services, helping you to quickly and effectively obtain the information of interested exosomes.