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Peer-reviewedCC BY-NC-NDActa pharmaceutica Sinica. B

Molecular smugglers in obesity-driven MASLD: Snitching on adipose-derived extracellular vesicles

  • Qiuyang Chen1
  • Taisiia Shevchenko1
  • Dewen Zhan2
  • Ningning Ma3
  • Sander Lefere4
  • Joost Boeckmans1
  • Joery De Kock1
  • Freddy Van Goethem1
  • Yong He3
  • Tamara Vanhaecke1
  • Robim M. Rodrigues1
4 affiliations
  1. 1Department of In Vitro Toxicology and Dermato-Cosmetology (IVTD), Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), Brussels 1090, Belgium
  2. 2Translational Oncology Research Center (TORC), Hematology and Immunology (HEIM), Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), Brussels 1090, Belgium
  3. 3State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica (SIMM), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
  4. 4Hepatology Research Unit, Department of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Ghent University, Ghent 9000, Belgium
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Abstract

Obesity-related adipose tissue (AT) dysfunction is closely associated with the development and progression of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), the most prevalent chronic liver disease. Emerging evidence highlights that the AT-liver crosstalk is mediated by AT-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) that exacerbate the progression of MASLD during obesity. During obesity development, AT undergoes pathological remodeling characterized by hypertrophic adipocytes, pro-inflammatory macrophages, dysfunctional adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs), and increased cellular heterogeneity, which collectively alter the composition and function of secreted EVs. AT-derived EVs enter the circulation and transport bioactive cargo, including microRNAs (miRNAs), mtDNA, proteins and lipids to the liver, where they can modulate hepatocellular metabolism, liver inflammation and fibrogenesis. This review outlines the current state of knowledge on AT-derived EVs during MASLD, emphasizing the dynamic changes in AT under metabolic stress as well as the interactions between AT-derived EVs and the liver. We further explore the potential of EVs and their associated molecules as noninvasive biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets and underscore that understanding AT-liver communication via EVs offers perspectives for precision medicine in MASLD.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{chen2026molecular,
  title = {{Molecular smugglers in obesity-driven MASLD: Snitching on adipose-derived extracellular vesicles}},
  author = {Qiuyang Chen and Taisiia Shevchenko and Dewen Zhan and Ningning Ma and Sander Lefere and Joost Boeckmans and Joery De Kock and Freddy Van Goethem and Yong He and Tamara Vanhaecke and Robim M. Rodrigues},
  journal = {Acta pharmaceutica Sinica. B},
  year = {2026},
  month = sep,
  doi = {10.1016/j.apsb.2026.08.025},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13729536},
  note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Molecular smugglers in obesity-driven MASLD: Snitching on adipose-derived extracellular vesicles
AU  - Qiuyang Chen
AU  - Taisiia Shevchenko
AU  - Dewen Zhan
AU  - Ningning Ma
AU  - Sander Lefere
AU  - Joost Boeckmans
AU  - Joery De Kock
AU  - Freddy Van Goethem
AU  - Yong He
AU  - Tamara Vanhaecke
AU  - Robim M. Rodrigues
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/02
JO  - Acta pharmaceutica Sinica. B
DO  - 10.1016/j.apsb.2026.08.025
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13729536
AB  - Obesity-related adipose tissue (AT) dysfunction is closely associated with the development and progression of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), the most prevalent chronic liver disease. Emerging evidence highlights that the AT-liver crosstalk is mediated by AT-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) that exacerbate the progression of MASLD during obesity. During obesity development, AT undergoes pathological remodeling characterized by hypertrophic adipocytes, pro-inflammatory macrophages, dysfunctional adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs), and increased cellular heterogeneity, which collectively alter the composition and function of secreted EVs. AT-derived EVs enter the circulation and transport bioactive cargo, including microRNAs (miRNAs), mtDNA, proteins and lipids to the liver, where they can modulate hepatocellular metabolism, liver inflammation and fibrogenesis. This review outlines the current state of knowledge on AT-derived EVs during MASLD, emphasizing the dynamic changes in AT under metabolic stress as well as the interactions between AT-derived EVs and the liver. We further explore the potential of EVs and their associated molecules as noninvasive biomarkers and potential therapeutic targets and underscore that understanding AT-liver communication via EVs offers perspectives for precision medicine in MASLD.
SN  - 2211-3835
SN  - 2211-3843
ER  -