What are Exosomes?
Exosomes are small vesicles that are secreted by stem cells. They contain large amounts of growth factors, cytokines and other substances with high regenerative potential that can be transferred to other cells due to their unique structure.
This structure allows the exosomes to fuse with other cells in the body and to release their content into other cells. The contents of the exosomes such as cytokines, growth factors and mRNA can then help the cell heal itself due to the actions of the transferred signaling molecules. Contrary to stem cells, exosomes do not replicate, do not contain DNA and do not elicit an immune response, resulting in a safer product compared to stem cells. By definition, exosome products are cell free and do not contain any live cells.
How do they work?
Stem cell derived exosomes have been shown to be the source of healing in stem cell treatments. The process for which stem cell products heal the body is as follows:
An injured tissue releases chemical markers signaling their damage > a stem cell absorbs these markers and creates the appropriate components for healing the tissue > the stem cell packages these components into a vesicle called an exosome > the exosome goes to the site of injured tissue and attaches > the exosome releases its contents to the injured tissue, healing the tissue
Stem Cell derived exosomes have been shown to be efficacious in a number of studies related to repair of peripheral nerve damage, traumatic brain injury, accelerated wound healing and bone fusion, tissue repair, anti-inflammatory effects, skin regeneration, cartilage regeneration, treatment for injured ligaments/tendons, osteoarthritis, bone regeneration, and vaginal rejuvenation.
Despite these reported effects of exosomes, there are currently no FDA approved exosome products available in the US.
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