Table 1.
Major subtypes of EVs and their representative features (Modified from Han et al 2019, Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License).
| EV subtype | Exosomes | Microvesicles (MVs)/ ectosomes/microparticles | Apoptotic bodies (ABs) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subcellular origin | Multivesicular bodies (MVBs)/ endosomes | Plasma membrane | Apoptotic blebs |
| Regular diameter | 30–120 nm | 100–1000 nm | 0.8–5.0 μm |
| Sedimentation force | 100,000–120,000 × g | 10,000 g | 2000 g |
| Types of generation | Constitutive | Regulated | Regulated |
| Filtration | 20–200 nm | >200 nm | >1000 nm |
| Intracellular storage | Yes | No | No |
| Biogenetic mechanisms | Rab proteins (i.e. Rab7, Rab11, Rab27A/B, Rab35), NSMase, ESCRTs, syndecan, syntenin, ATG12, tetraspanins | ASMase, flippase, flippase and scramblase (TMEM16F), ARF6 | Annexin V, Caspase 3 |
| Organelles | No | No | Yes |
| Content | Proteins, cholesterol, ceramide, noncoding RNA, mRNA, miRNA, and cytosol | Proteins, phosphatidylserine, cholesterol, mRNA, miRNA, and cytosol | Proteins, phosphatidylserine, DNA, rRNA, and cytosol |
| Marker proteins | CD 9, CD63 and CD61, tetraspanins, HSP70, HSP90, Alix, Rab5a/b | TyA and C1a, ARF6 and VCAMP3, β1 integrins, selectins, CD40, MMP, lineage markers, and ezrin | Calreticulin, TSP and C3b, and histones |
| Impact on the immune system | Immunostimulators | Immunosuppressors | Immunosuppressors |