Oliveira Dias J, Sampaio Fagundes I, Bisio MDC, da Silva Barboza V, Jacinto AA, Altei WF. Extracellular vesicles as the common denominator among the 7 Rs of radiobiology: From the cellular level to clinical practice.
Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer 2025;
1880:189315. [PMID:
40216093 DOI:
10.1016/j.bbcan.2025.189315]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2024] [Revised: 04/03/2025] [Accepted: 04/03/2025] [Indexed: 04/17/2025]
Abstract
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are lipid-bound particles released by tumor cells and widely explored in cancer development, progression, and treatment response, being considered as valuable components to be explored as biomarkers or cellular targets to modulate the effect of therapies. The mechanisms underlying the production and profile of EVs during radiotherapy (RT) require addressing radiobiological aspects to determine cellular responses to specific radiation doses and fractionation. In this review, we explore the role of EVs in the 7 Rs of radiobiology, known as the molecular basis of a biological tissue response to radiation, supporting EVs as a shared player in all the seven processes. We also highlight the relevance of EVs in the context of liquid biopsy and resistance to immunotherapy, aiming to establish the connection and utility of EVs as tools in contemporary and precision radiotherapy.
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