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Exosomes

Exosomes are small membrane vesicles of endocytic origin secreted by most cell types in vitro. Cells continuously secrete a large number of microvesicles, exosomes and small molecules into the extracellular space. Exosomes have been shown to contain mRNA and miRNA and they are able to mediate communication between cells, by transport of RNA and proteins which can be functionalized in the recipient cell. The ability to transport bioactive cargoes, gives exosomes innate therapeutic potential as a natural drug carrier. Efficient techniques for loading drugs into exosomes to utilize the natural carrier capabilities of these vesicles remains to be elucidated.

Applications of Exosomes

The presence exosomes in blood, saliva, and urine paves the way for the possible application of exosomes as a diagnostic marker for diseases. Many diseases are difficult to detect by the methods and equipment available today and there is a growing demand for development of new non‐invasive methods to detect diseases in early stages. The use of exosomes as markers of disease is being investigated to cement their potential as a non-invasive diagnostic tool for early detection of many diseases, in particular cancers. This, however, relies on thorough characterisation of exosomes in both healthy and diseased states

An important factor to understanding the roles of exosomes is knowledge of their biodistribution. Currently, the number of publications describing the biodistribution of exosomes is limited. The main reason being the lack of a robust fluorescent label that can be visualised in vivo. Mapping the specific cell type derived exosomes can increase our knowledge on the roles of exosomes in the organism, as well as help to identify natural targeting systems.

Isolation, Characterisation and Fluorescent Labelling

The most common isolation protocol uses a differential centrifugation to fractionate cells, microvesicles, and exosomes, which are pelleted by ultracentrifugation. After vesicles are secreted from cells into the extracellular environment, it difficult to separate the different subpopulations of vesicles to obtain a pure sample. We have developed methods to optimise isolation and thorough characterisation procedures to obtain pure and well-characterised exosomes. Furthermore, we have developed a simple method for labelling of exosomes with a robust fluorescent label that can be visualised in vivo, allowing investigation of the biodistribution of different cell derived exosomes.

Collaborators:

Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark

Dan Peer, Department of Cell Research & Immunology, Tel Aviv University, Israel

Moein Moghimi, school of Medicine, Pharmacy and Health, Durham University, UK

Recent Publications

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Olesen, LK, Handberg, C, Missel, M, Schierakow, L & Werlauff, U 2026, 'Challenges and rehabilitation needs among adults with myasthenia gravis - a Danish cross-sectional questionnaire study', Disability and Rehabilitation, vol. 48, no. 3, pp. 701-709. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638288.2025.2512408
Brehmer, M, Cordeil, M, Hurter, C, Itoh, T, Büschel, W, Jasim, M, Prouzeau, A, Saffo, D, Bartram, L, Carpendale, S, Zhu-Tian, C, Cunningham, A, Dwyer, T, Huron, S, Itoh, M, Joshi, A, Kiyokawa, K, Kuzuoka, H, Lee, B, León, GM, Reiterer, H, Ryskeldiev, B, Schwabish, J, Smith, BA, Sumi, Y, Suzuki, R, Tang, A, Yang, Y & Zhao, J 2026 'Challenges in Synchronous & Remote Collaboration Around Visualization'. https://doi.org/10.1145/3772318.3791117
Kaijansinkko, H, Tainio, J, Bjerre, A, Gjerstad, AC, Weinreich, IDS, Jalanko, H, Wennberg, L, Westphal Ladfors, S, Thiesson, HC, Bekassy, Z, Sørensen, SS & Jahnukainen, T 2026, 'Changes in maintenance immunosuppression after pediatric kidney transplantation: a report from the Nordic pediatric kidney transplantation registry', Pediatric Nephrology, vol. 41, no. 2, pp. 547-556. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00467-025-07030-7
Aukland, K., Breidlid, H., Christodoulou, E., Daou, A. M., Emerson, L., Gallagher, T., Kornholt, B., Kopp, A. O , Lindhardt, E., Myrbøe, T., Paaske, N., Richardson, N., Sigurdsson, L. 2026, Chapter 3 Contextualised examples. OsloMet - storbyuniversitetet, Oslo. <https://www.kp.dk/en/concitizen/resources-for-teaching/an-introduction-and-link-to-the-textbook/>
Breidlid, H., Hindy, E.A., Kopp, A. O , Lindhardt, E., Myrbøe, T., Sigurdsson, L. 2026, Chapter 5 Didactic reflection and practice. in H Breidlid & L Sigurdsson (eds), Teaching contested narratives and controversial issues: Contextualised approaches from Cyprus, Denmark, Lebanon, Northern Ireland and Norway. pp. 112-145.
Aukland, K., Breidlid, H., Fahed, Z., Henriksen, G. F., Kornholt, B., Kopp, A. O , Lindhardt, E., Paaske, N., Richardson, N., Sigurdsson, L. 2026, Chapter 6 Subject exemplifications. in H Breidlid & L Sigurdsson (eds), Teaching contested narratives and controversial issues: Contextualised approaches from Cyprus, Denmark, Lebanon, Northern Ireland and Norway. OsloMet - storbyuniversitetet, pp. 145-179. <https://www.kp.dk/en/concitizen/resources-for-teaching/an-introduction-and-link-to-the-textbook/>
Pisani, L, Di Lecce, P, Sendagire, C, Pari, V, Olivieri, C, Uddin, RAME, Aryal, D, Athapattu, P, Bagshaw, S, Burghi, G, Buanes, EA, Christensen, S, Dwyer, R, Fernández, AL, Finazzi, S, Guidet, B, Harrison, D, Hanciles, E, Hashmi, M, Hashimoto, S, Ichihara, N, Lone, NI, López, MDPA, Minh, YL, Perren, A, Phommasone, K, Pilcher, D, Reinikainen, M, Waweru-Siika, W, Siaw-Frimpong, M, Sigurdsson, MI, Shamal, M, Sultan, M, Palo, JEM, Thomson, D, Vijayaraghavan, BKT, Beane, A, Haniffa, R, Dongelmans, DA, Lipcsey, M, Salluh, JIF & GRID investigators of the Linking of Global Intensive Care (LOGIC) 2026, 'Characteristics of intensive care unit registries-findings from the Global Registry ICU Datasets (GRID) survey', Critical Care Science, vol. 38, e20260168. https://doi.org/10.62675/2965-2774.20260168
Larsen, AC, Shim, S, Bæksgaard, L, Pfeiffer, P, Nordsmark, M, Brøndum, R, Sørensen, JR, Motavaf, AK & Ladekarl, M 2026, 'Characteristics, treatment, and outcome of recurrent gastro-oesophageal adenocarcinoma after perioperative chemotherapy and radical resection', Acta Oncologica, vol. 65, pp. 9-18. https://doi.org/10.2340/1651-226X.2026.44264
Lin, W, Lin, W, Yang, L, Zhang, C, Li, X, Xiao, J, Chen, X, Cai, F, Chen, C, Zhang, M, Zhang, Y & Li, L 2026, 'Characterization of a novel Dye-Decolorizing peroxidase from Brevibacillus agri and its application in detoxification of textile industry wastewater', Bioresource Technology, vol. 440, 133430. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2025.133430
Hedmer, M, Lovén, K, Rex, J, Nilsson, CA, Polat, M, Nøjgaard, JK, Pagels, J, Strandberg, B & Hagvall, L 2026, 'Characterization of occupational exposure to air pollutants during asphalt milling and paving', Annals of Work Exposures and Health, vol. 70, no. 2, wxaf078. https://doi.org/10.1093/annweh/wxaf078
Asselborn, T, Bender, M, Marwitz, F, Melzer, S & Moeller, R 2026, 'ChatHA – From an Information Retrieval Agent to a System of Expert Agents', AI-Assisted Archival Research in the Age of Vast Data and the Non-Canonical, Aarhus, 09/03/2026 - 09/03/2026.
da Silva, LCM, Dos Santos Maia, AC, de Sousa, NCF, Pavi, CP, Savi, BP, Nagashima, S, Goldoni, FC, Eisendecker, HI, Damasceno, S, Schneider, AH, Dos Santos, AÁ, Macedo Júnior, SJ, Mascarin, LZ, Bueno, LR, Rodrigues, JFS, Maria-Ferreira, D, Silva, IT, Fongaro, G, Bomfim, MRQ, Cunha, TM, Costa, SKP, de Sousa Valente, J, Quintao, NLM, Marini, M, Chieca, M, De Logu, F, Nassini, R, Calixto, JB, de Noronha, L, Brain, SD & Fernandes, ES 2026, 'Chikungunya virus-induced persistent allodynia is accompanied by joint microenvironmental changes and involves cartilage degradation and TRPA1 activation', British Journal of Pharmacology. https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.70362
Steen, A, Jones, AF & Lau, FC (eds) 2026, China Sounds Across Borders: Migration, Mobility, and Modernity. Chinese University of Hong Kong Press, Hong Kong.
Hyldgaard, C, Bonnesen, B, Vognsen, AK, Sivapalan, P, Eklöf, J, Jordan, AS, Bendstrup, E, Ellingsen, T & Jensen, JUS 2026, 'Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and rheumatoid arthritis: severe exacerbations, pneumonia, and death in a population-based cohort', Scandinavian Journal of Rheumatology. https://doi.org/10.1080/03009742.2025.2603046
Armengol, L, Haraguchi, L, Moyano, M, Hernández-León, S & Jakobsen, HH 2026, 'Ciliate grazing control of a spring bloom in a temperate fjord', Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, vol. 329, 109631. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2025.109631
Huulgaard, RD, Mosgaard, MA, Bundgaard, AM, Nors, B, Nielsen, S & Haase, LM 2026, Circular Public Procurement of Textiles – A Roadmap. in CEIC proceedings ( Circular Economy - Interdisciplinary Conference 2026).
Wedge, E, Tulstrup, M, Todisco, G, Moura, P, Côme, C, Hansen, JW, Jespersen, JS, Schlotmann, B, Creignou, M, Dahl, M, Schöllkopf, C, Raaschou-Jensen, K, Wennerberg, K, Porse, B, Weischenfeldt, J, Hellström-Lindberg, E, Kristensen, LS & Grønbæk, K 2026, 'Circular RNA expression landscapes in myelodysplastic neoplasms: Associations with mutational signatures and disease progression', Molecular Oncology. https://doi.org/10.1002/1878-0261.70208
Haase, LM, Mugge, R, Jaeger-Erben, M, Moesgaard, M, Bocken, N & Pizzol, M 2026, 'Circular Value Toolkit: A Novel Route to Value Preservation in a Sufficiency-Based Circular Economy', Circular Economy and Sustainability.
Pham, TT, Nimptsch, K, Aleksandrova, K, Jenab, M, Fedirko, V, Olsen, A, Tjønneland, A, Cadeau, C, Severi, G, Schulze, MB, Fortner, RT, Katzke, V, Agnoli, C, Sacerdote, C, Tumino, R, Signoriello, S, Trobajo-Sanmartín, C, Gómez, JH, Chirlaque, MD, Sánchez, MJ, Crous-Bou, M, May, A, Heath, A, Aune, D, Weiderpass, E & Pischon, T 2026, 'Circulating fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP-4) concentrations and mortality in individuals with colorectal cancer in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study', International Journal of Cancer, vol. 158, no. 3, pp. 546-559. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijc.70090
Taliento, C, Greco, P, Bruni, G, Dueholm Hjorth, IM, Coosemans, A, Froyman, W, Timmerman, D, Rotondo, JC, Mazziotta, C, Arcieri, M, Restaino, S, Multinu, F, Vizzielli, G, Giorgi, C, Dyrskjøt, L, Pinton, P & Morciano, G 2026, 'Circulating tumor DNA in the diagnosis of ovarian cancer: a systematic review', International Journal of Gynecological Cancer, vol. 36, no. 1, 102686. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgc.2025.102686
Aaquist, T, Henriksen, TV, Mariager Jakobsen, LL, Fristrup, CW, Pfeiffer, P, de Stricker, K, Sparrelid, E, Moro, CF, Mortensen, F, Knudsen, AR, Hamilton-Dutoit, S, Kleeff, J, Mortensen, MB, Andersen, CL & Detlefsen, S 2026, 'Circulating tumour DNA as a prognostic tool for surgically treated pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma', Human Pathology, vol. 168, 106024. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.humpath.2025.106024
Lacey, C, Hill, MC, Bradford, AL, Oleson, EM, Vivier, F, Pacini, AF, Hammond, PS & Bejder, L 2026, 'Circum-Island Line-Transect Abundance Estimates of Spinner Dolphins Around Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi', Marine Mammal Science, vol. 42, no. 1, e70055. https://doi.org/10.1111/mms.70055
van der Meer, L, Esterle, L, Cools, M & Loidl, M 2026, 'Cities aren't rocket engines: the maturity of digital twins in human-centred urban planning', International Journal of Digital Earth, vol. 19, no. 1, 2630452. https://doi.org/10.1080/17538947.2026.2630452
Kristensen, TM 2026, Civil War, Trophies, and the History Written on the Roman Body. in H Börm, CH Lange & J Wienand (eds), Cultures of Civil War: Polarization, Conflict, and Reconciliation in Antiquity. Walter de Gruyter, Studies in Ancient Civil War, vol. 1.
Adli, E, D’Auria, G, Catalan Lasheras, N, Cilento, V, Corsini, R, Doebert, S, Draper, M, Faus-Golfe, A, Fraser Mactavish, E, Grudiev, A, Latina, A, Linssen, L, Osborne, JA, Papaphilippou, Y, Robson, A, Rossi, C, Schulte, D, Stapnes, S, Syratchev, I, Tomas Garcia, R, Wuensch, W, Abe, T, Abramowicz, H, Adolphsen, C, Aguglia, D, Ahmad, A, Aicheler, M, Aimard, B, Aksoy, A, Alesini, D, Alexopoulos, T, Alharthi, F, Ali, M, Alipour Tehrani, N, Almanza Soto, M, Andrianala, F, Antoniou, F, Apsimon, RJ, Arominski, D, Artoos, K, Aryshev, A, Ashkenazy, Y, Atieh, S, Baccigalupi, C, Baibuz, E, Bailey, I, Bainbridge, A, Balazs, C, Balik, G, Ballabriga Sune, R, Bambade, P, Banon Caballero, D, Barklow, T, Barnes, MJ, Baturin, V, Bauche, J, Bellaveglia, M, Belver-Aguilar, C, Benedetti, G, Benhammou, Y, Bergamaschi, M, Bernhard, A, Bett, D, Bettencourt, M, Bettoni, S, Blanch Gutierrez, C, Blanco Garcia, O, Blaskovic Kraljevic, N, Bobb, L, Bodenstein, RM, Boland, MJ, Boogert, S, Boorman, G, Bopp, M, Boronat, M, Bosco, A, Božović Jelisavčić, I, Bozzi, RA, Bozzini, D, Brücken, E, Brückman de Renstrom, P, Bründermann, E, Braun, HH, Brenner, R, Brunetti, L, Brunner, O, Buckland, M, Buonomo, B, Burkhardt, H, Burrows, PN, Bursali, H, Burt, GC, Calatroni, S, Campbell, M, Capstick, M, Cardelli, A, Casalbuoni, S, Cassany, B, Castro, E, Cerqueira Bastos, M, Chaikovska, I, Chefdeville, M, Chehab, R, Chekanov, S, Chen, H, Chen, JBB, Chen, G, Cherif, A, Chevallay, E, Clapp, A, Clarke, JA, Coman, M, Costa, R, Craievich, P, Curcio, A, Cure, B, Curt, S, Cuvet, Y, Dannheim, D, Davier, M, Dayyani, MK, Degiovanni, A, Dehler, M, Delahaye, JP, Delerue, N, Delikaris, D, Denizli, H, Dexter, AC, Diehl, L, Dipac, D, Djurabekova, F, Dolgashev, V, Dominguez, M, Dominjon, A, Dorda Martin, A, Drancourt, C, Drobniak, P, Edwards, AV, El Majdara, M, Ekelöf, T, Esperante, D, Evans, L, Faillace, L, Fang, W, Farabolini, W, Fedosseev, V, Felsberger, L, Fernandez-Ortega, JC, Ferracin, P, Ferrario, M, Firlej, M, Fiutowski, TA, Foraz, K, Franzi, M, Friebel, F, Fukuda, M, Fuster, J, Fuster, N, Gaddi, A, Gallo, A, Gamba, D, Gao, Y, Garcia, F, Garcia Morales, H, Garcia-Tabares, L, Garion, C, Garvey, T, Gasior, M, Gatignon, L, Gavela, D, Gazis, EN, Gazis, N, Geoffroy, N, Gerbershagen, A, Gethmann, J, Ghasem, H, Ghigo, A, Giansiracusa, PJ, Gibson, S, Gilardi, A, Gimeno, B, Giribono, A, Di Giulio, C, Goldstein, J, González, D, Gonzalez Anton, S, Gonzalez Berges, M, van der Graaf, H, Granados, E, Grau, A, Grefe, C, Gschwendtner, E, Gu, Q, Guenzel, T, Guerin, H, Guillot-Vignot, FG, Guinchard, M, Guler, H, Haeggström, E, Hajari, SS, Hamel, P, Han, Y, Harryman, D, Heilig, B, Hewett, J, Higashi, Y, Higo, T, Hill, V, Hillenbrand, S, Holma, JK, Hoorani, H, Huang, W, Huang, D, Huang, X, Huang, S, Huitu, K, Huttel, E, Idzik, M, Levinsen, Y, Iriso, U, Irles, A, Jacewicz, M, Jacquemier, J, Jamison, S, Jeff, A, Jensen, E, Jeremie, A, Jing, C, Jonker, M, Kaabi, W, Kačarević, G, Kalinowski, J, Kałuzińska, OA, Karataev, P, Karpenko, O, Karyotakis, Y, Kassamakov, I, Kemp, M, Kennedy, L, Khan, WA, Khan, V, Kieffer, RB, Kimari, J, Klamka, J, Koitermaa, R, Kokkinis, N, Koppenburg, P, Kopsalis, I, Korchevnyuk, V, Korsback, A, Korsun, A, Korysko, P, Kourkoulis, S, Kovermann, JW, Kozsar, CI, van der Kraaij, E, Krawczyk, MA, Kremastiotis, I, Krumpa, N, Krupa, B, Krupa, M, Kuang, YP, Kubo, K, Kucharczyk, M, Kulis, S, Kuroda, S, Kurtulus, A, Kyritsakis, A, Lasocha, K, Lebedynskya, Y, Lebedynskyi, S, LeDiberder, F, Lefevre, T, Lehti, S, Lesiak, T, Levy, A, Levy, I, Li, B, Li, Y, Liedl, A, Lindstrøm, CA, List, B, Liu, X, Liu, W, Llopart Cudie, X, Lu, X, Lucas, T, Luiten, OJ, Lyapin, A, Ma, L, Magazinik, A, Mainaud Durand, H, Mallows, S, Manosperti, E, Marchand, C, Margraf-O’Neal, R, Marin Lacoma, E, Markiewicz, T, Marrelli, C, Marsh, S, Marti, Z, Martin, V, Martinez Reviriego, P, Mcmonagle, G, Mekala, K, Meng, X, Mether, LM, Michizono, S, Millar, WL, Mitsou, V, Modena, M, Moffeit, K, Moniz Cabral, PB, Moradpur-Tari, E, Morales Sanchez, P, Moreno Lacer, M, Moroń, J, Müller, AS, Musat, V, Musienko, I, Musumeci, E, Mutsaers, P, Mytrochenko, VV, Nanni, E, Nanut Petrič, M, Nappa, JM, Nergiz, Z, Nikiforou, N, Nonis, M, Nordlund, K, Nosochkov, Y, Ögren, J, Okugi, T, Olivares Herrador, J, De Oliveira, L, Oliver, C, Olvegård, M, Oras, S, Orero, C, Oriunno, M, Österberg, K, Oyulmaz, KY, Papke, K, Parodi, M, Pastushenko, A, Patecki, M, Pawlik, B, Peauger, F, Pedraza-Motavita, L, Pedrozzi, M, Peiffer, P, Pellegrini, D, Pepitone, K, Perez, F, Perez Fontenla, A, Peric, I, Persson, THB, Pienimaki, N, Piersanti, L, Piot, P, Pitman, S, Pittet, S, Plassard, F, Plouin, J, Pont, M, Popov, I, Pöschl, R, Poss, S, Power, J, Del Pozo Romano, V, Protopopescu, D, Pushkarna, P, Raboanary, R, Raguin, JY, Rassool, RP, Redford, S, Rey, SF, Rey Orozco, O, Rivkin, L, Rizzo, T, Rodriguez Castro, E, Roloff, P, Ruehl, I, Ruiz-Jimeno, A, Rumolo, G, Saez de Jauregui, D, Said, E, Sailer, A, Saressalo, A, Sauza Bedolla, J, Schloegelhofer, A, Schmickler, H, Senes, E, Senol, A, Serluca, M, Serpico, C, Shaker, H, Shao, J, Shepherd, BJA, Shi, J, Shields, W, Sicking, E, Simon, F, Sjobak, KN, Skowronski, PK, Sobrino Mompean, P, Sollander, P, Sopicki, P, Sosin, MP, Spannagel, S, Stella, A, Sterbini, G, Ström, R, Stuart, MJ, Stragier, XFD, Svihra, P, Świentek, KP, Szypula, K, Tan, J, Tang, C, Tangari, G, Tantawi, S, Tecker, F, Terlecki, P, Terunuma, N, Thrane, P, Tiirats, T, Timeo, L, Titov, M, Toral, F, Uggerhøj, U, Uythoven, J, Vaccarezza, C, Valerian, J, Vamvakas, AL, Vicente Barreto Pinto, M, Vidaković, I, Vilalte, S, Volpi, M, Vos, M, Vouters, G, Vukasinović, N, Walsh, D, Wang, P, Wang, Z, Wang, Y, Watson, NK, Weatherford, B, Weber, MA, Wegner, R, Wendt, M, White, G, Widorski, M, Williams, M, Winter, AG, Wojtoń, T, Woodley, M, Woolley, B, Wroe, L, Wu, X, Yamamoto, A, Yang, R, Yavas, Zadin, V, Zawiejski, L, Zennaro, R, Zerwas, D, Zha, H, Zhang, W, Zhang, J, Zhao, Z, Zhao, Y, Żarnecki, AF & Zisopoulos, P 2026, 'CLIC readiness report', European Physical Journal: Special Topics, vol. 234, no. 22, pp. 6473-6652. https://doi.org/10.1140/epjs/s11734-025-02016-w
Strulik, H & Trimborn, T 2026, 'Climate Change and Population Growth: A Reassessment', Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, vol. 137, 103282. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeem.2026.103282
Mo, Y, Xiao, P, Liu, L, Zuo, J, Chen, H, Jeppesen, E, Chen, G, Gu, X, Zhu, YG & Yang, J 2026, 'Climate change-driven dispersal of pathogenic bacteria in large-scale lakes and reservoirs', Environment International, vol. 208, 110060. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2026.110060