AUTHOR=Zhao Jiawei , Li Yue , Jia Rongrong , Wang Jinghui , Shi Min , Wang Yugang 

TITLE=Mesenchymal Stem Cells-Derived Exosomes as Dexamethasone Delivery Vehicles for Autoimmune Hepatitis Therapy

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology

VOLUME=Volume 9 - 2021

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/bioengineering-and-biotechnology/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2021.650376

DOI=10.3389/fbioe.2021.650376

ISSN=2296-4185

ABSTRACT=Exosomes (Exos) are nanosized vesicles (around 100 nm) that recently serve as a promising drug carrier with high biocompatibility and low immunogenicity. Previous studies showed that Exos secreted from mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) provide protection for CCl4 induced liver injury. However, it is unclear whether Exos derived from MSCs protect concanavalin A (Con A) induced autoimmune hepatitis (AIH). In this study, the protective effect of Exos is confirmed and Dexamethasone (DEX) incorporated Exos named (Exo@DEX) are prepared. It is then investigated whether the Exo@DEX can function more efficiently compared to free drugs and naive Exos in ConA induced AIH mouse model. The results show that the Exo@DEX efficiently improves the effects of DEX in AIH by enhanced accumulation in the liver. These data suggest that Exo@DEX is a promising drug carrier for AIH and could have applications in other diseases.