Application of extracellular vesicles in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease

Abstract

Introduction: Inflammatory bowel disease(IBD) is caused by genetic, environmental, microbial and immune factors. IBD has two primary forms: Ulcerative colitis and Crohn´s disease. The incidence of IBD has significantly increased over the last few decades. Given that patients have poor response to drug treatments or are resistant to drug therapies, new therapies are needed for gastrointestinal inflammatory disease treatments. Most types of cells including mesenchymal stem cells produce extracellular vesicles, which play a vital role in cell-to-cell communication. Extracellular vesicles, depending on their contents, can stimulate or suppress immune responses. In recent years, stem cells derived extracellular vesicles have been used as agents for autoimmune and inflammatory disease treatments. In these studies, stem cells-derived extracellular vesicles have been shown to improve inflammatory conditions. in this review, we summarize the therapeutic uses of extracellular vesicles in regulating immune responses in inflammatory bowel disease.