Doctoral candidate Yunxi Chen explores the translation of extracellular vesicles into nanomedicine through the engineering of synthetic systems
Source: The Institute
March 13, 2025
Yunxi Chen, a trainee at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (The Institute) and doctoral candidate at McGill University, has recently published a new review article in the journal Science Advances.
The review, Leveraging nature’s nanocarriers: Translating insights from extracellular vesicles to biomimetic synthetic vesicles for biomedical applications, was published on February 26, 2025.
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are tiny particles naturally released by cells, acting as important messengers that help cells communicate. Both EVs and synthetic vesicles (SVs), such as liposomes, have transformed precision medicine by offering new ways to deliver treatments. However, researchers face significant challenges in adapting these tools for clinical use—EVs are difficult to produce in large quantities and vary in composition, while liposomes are quickly cleared by the immune system and have limited ability to target specific cells. Biomimetic SVs have emerged as a promising solution, combining the advantages of both natural and synthetic systems while overcoming their limitations. This review examines the latest developments in EV biology, identifies key research gaps, and explores the engineering challenges in SV production. It also highlights new opportunities to advance biomimetic SVs for clinical applications, with the potential to improve drug delivery and disease treatment.
This work is part of Yunxi Chen’s doctoral research, supervised by Julia Burnier, PhD, a scientist in the Cancer Research Program at The Institute.
Related news