Abstract

Engineering EVs for Cardiovascular Diseases

Eun Ji Chung, Dr. Karl Jacob Jr. and Karl Jacob III Early Career Chair, Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Surgery, and Medicine, University of Southern California

Extracellular vesicles derived from healthy sources contain natural homing properties and therapeutic cargo and can be leveraged as biomimetic carriers for targeted delivery. Additionally, extracellular vesicles represent an endogenous source of nanoparticles and can offer enhanced safety as a nanoparticle platform technology. In this presentation, EVs derived from healthy cells of the vasculature and their ability to be engineered as agents that inhibit vascular calcification and inflammation in atherosclerosis will be included. Strategies to enable EV surface modification and enhance cargo loading will be presented, and the potential of engineered EVs towards clinical applications will be discussed.