Potential Applications of Extracellular Vesicles in Diagnosing and Treating Neurodegenerative Diseases – Dr. Kenneth Witwer – Associate Professor of Molecular and Comparative Pathobiology and Neurology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Imagine a world where doctors could screen for or diagnose Alzheimer’s with a simple blood or saliva test; identifying specific extracellular vesicles may be a key area of research to get us there. Dr. Kenneth Witwer, associate professor of molecular and comparative pathobiology and neurology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, discusses extracellular vesicles (EVs). EVs are small signaling particles that cells use to communicate with one another. 

Dr. Witwer’s research interests include: extracellular vesicles, RNA-mediated regulation, biomarker discovery, and therapeutic modulation of intrinsic and innate defenses. Tune in to discover how Dr. Witwer is integrating these areas of research into diagnostic tools and potential treatments for Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases.

In this episode, you will discover:

· How viruses such as HIV utilize EVs to infect, invade, and integrate themselves into host cells

· What role EVs have in cell-to-cell signaling in health and pathology

· How EVs may someday help doctors obtain accurate diagnoses of diseases that are difficult to detect with current diagnostic tools

For more information visit the International Society for Extracellular Vesicles (<a href="http://www.isev.org/">www.isev.org/</a>) – This website includes information on extracellular vesicles, including two free courses on function of EVs in health and disease. The latest research on EVs is also published in the Journal of Extracellular Vesicles (JEV).