Exosome-mediated communication in motor neuron diseases

Identifier:  TFG:8978

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/TFG8978

Authors:  Girón Santiago, Aída

Abstract:
Neuromuscular diseases pose a significant challenge to the scientific community due to their heterogeneity and the wide variability of their causes. Therefore, it is essential to use tools that facilitate their diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment. Among these tools, biomarkers stand out. Biomarkers are objective and quantifiable measures of physiological or pathological processes, or responses to treatment; exosomes are one example. Exosomes are extracellular vesicles (EVs) secreted and released into the extracellular environment by almost all cell populations, and their molecular content reflects the cell's state. Their main function is cell communication, and they are involved in both physiological and pathological processes. In the case of neuromuscular diseases, it is necessary to characterize the exosomes originating from the motor neurons affected by these diseases. Furthermore, this study aims to demonstrate the existence of exosome-mediated communication between neuronal and muscle cells. To achieve these objectives, various techniques were employed, including cell culture of the C2C12 and NSC-34 cell lines (motor neuron and muscle models, respectively), immunocytochemistry, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and exosome population analysis, among others. The results obtained demonstrate, for the first time, the release of exosomes by motor neurons and characterize these vesicles, observing their internalization by C2C12 muscle cells.