Microfluidic‐Based Exosome Analysis for Liquid Biopsy

Abstract

Liquid biopsy offers non‐invasive and real‐time molecular profiling of individual patients, and is thus considered a revolutionary technology in precision medicine. Exosomes have been acknowledged as significant biomarkers in liquid biopsy, as they play a central role in cell–cell communication and are closely related to the pathogenesis of most human malignancies. Nevertheless, in biofluids exosomes always co‐exist with other particles, and the cargo components of exosomes are highly heterogeneous. Thus, the isolation and molecular characterization of exosomes are still technically challenging. Microfluidics technology effectively addresses this challenge by virtue of its inherent advantages, such as precise manipulation of fluids, low consumption of samples and reagents, and a high level of integration. Recent advances in microfluidics allow in situ exosome capture and molecular detection with unprecedented selectivity and sensitivity. In this review, the state‐of‐the‐art developments in microfluidics‐based exosome research, including exosome isolation approaches and molecular detection strategies, with highlights of the characterization of exosomal biomarkers in cancer liquid biopsy is summarized. The major challenges are also discussed and some perspectives for the future directions of exosome‐based liquid biopsy in microfluidic systems are presented.

Roles of Exosome Genomic DNA in Colorectal Cancer

“…Exosomes can be found in almost all cells and body fluids, including blood, sweat, tears, urine, saliva, breast milk, ascites, and cerebrospinal fluid ( Liang et al, 2021 ; Lin et al, 2021 ). Exosomes carry various macromolecules from different tissues and organs, loaded with nucleic acids (DNA and RNA), structural components of cells (protein and lipids), and cell metabolites.…”

Electrically driven microfluidic platforms for exosome manipulation and characterization

“…For example, in the context of cancer diagnostics, the use of exosome‐based non‐invasive (or minimally‐invasive) liquid biopsies presents several advantages over traditional tissue biopsies. This is due to the diverse molecular cargoes of exosomes, which not only represent the status of parental cells, but also the environment surrounding the tumor to be analyzed [16]. Furthermore, exosomes have been proven to be relevant as drug‐delivery vehicles, for example, for the delivery of small interfering RNA (siRNA) to the brain parenchyma by crossing the blood‐brain barrier (BBB) [17].…”

A Facile Nanoimpregnation Method for Preparing Paper‐Based Sensors and Actuators

“…[ 8,9 ] In addition to these examples related to security papers, magnetic papers are also of interest due to their potential applications in electromagnetic shielding, information storage, magnetic filtering, magnetographic printing, textronic, loudspeaker membranes, flexible data storage, toxic waste remediation, membrane filtration/purification, point‐of‐care microfluidic devices, and magnetomechanical actuators. [ 10–13 ] In comparison to other magnetic materials, magnetic paper exhibits some superior properties, such as softness, renewable use, and folding resistance. [ 14 ]…”