Author:
Ojeda Fernando,Barreto Gabriela,J. Posadas Sinforiano
Abstract
Exosomes are smaller extracellular vesicles (EVs) involved in complex intercellular communication, which were first discovered in sheep reticulocytes. Exosomes include two subpopulations, large (Exo-L, 90–120 nm) and small (Exo-S, 60–80 nm) exosome vesicles. Recently studies of RNA viruses including SARS-CoV-2 have demonstrated that exosomes release regulatory factors from infected cells and deliver other functional host genetic elements to neighbouring cells, and these functions are involved in the infection process and modulate the cellular responses. This review provides an overview of the biogenesis, composition, and some of the most striking functions of exosome secretion in zoonoses and identifies physiological/pathological areas in need of further research as well as potential therapeutic agents in zoonotic disease.