# Isolation of miRNA-rich extracellular vesicles for liquid biopsy

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF TX MD ANDERSON CAN CTR · 2022 · $189,338

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) comprise a heterogeneous group of secreted membranous structures that contain a
variety of biomolecular cargo such as nucleic acids, proteins and lipids. EVs are ideal for liquid biopsy because
EVs are often more highly secreted by cancer cells than by normal cells, can be detected in body fluids of cancer
patients, and protect their cargo from degradation. Because EV cargo often reflects the genetic and biological
status of the cell of origin, constituents of EV cargo are promising biomarkers for cancer diagnosis, prognosis
and recurrence. Of these constituents, miRNAs have attracted substantial attention as potential biomarkers.
However, several studies indicate that a substantial proportion of EVs do not contain significant miRNA copy
numbers. These studies have implicated the existence of a subpopulation(s) of EVs that is enriched in miRNAs,
but this subpopulation has not been identified. The overarching goal of this study is to develop approaches to
isolate subpopulations of EVs that are enriched in miRNAs for liquid biopsy purposes. Our preliminary studies
have identified several distinct subpopulations of EVs based on their surface protein expression, and implicate
that the surface protein repertoire could identify EVs that are enriched in miRNAs. In this study, we will firstly
evaluate EVs that are secreted by human cancer cells and present in body fluids of patients with three major
types of cancers (ovarian, colorectal, renal) for the prevalence of EV subpopulations defined by their surface
protein repertoire. Secondly, we will determine the total miRNA content in each subpopulation of EVs that are
secreted by human cancer cells and present in cancer patient body fluids. Thirdly, we will evaluate the detection
of miRNAs in EVs that are isolated by immunocapture of different EV surface proteins from body fluids of tumor-
bearing mice and cancer patients. If successful, our study will provide answers to critical gaps-in-knowledge in
the EV biomarker field and, importantly, develop an approach for isolating miRNA-rich EVs that can be readily
used in a clinical laboratory setting for liquid biopsy purposes.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10431224
- **Project number:** 1R21CA270508-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF TX MD ANDERSON CAN CTR
- **Principal Investigator:** Honami Naora
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $189,338
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-04-01 → 2024-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10431224

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10431224, Isolation of miRNA-rich extracellular vesicles for liquid biopsy (1R21CA270508-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-28 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10431224. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*