Dr. Carla Lopes from the University of Minho, Portugal, will present a lecture entitled “Redox Regulation of Extracellular Vesicle Communication” at Targeting Extracellular Vesicles 2026.

Introduction: Oxidative stress is a hallmark of aging and neurodegenerative disorders, profoundly affecting mitochondrial function, lysosomal homeostasis, and inflammatory signaling. While extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as important mediators of intercellular communication, the mechanisms by which redox imbalance regulates EV release, cargo composition, and biological function remain poorly understood. Our work investigates how oxidative stress reshapes EV-mediated communication and contributes to the propagation of neuroinflammatory responses.

Materials and Methods: Human dermal fibroblasts were used to investigate the impact of oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction on EV communication. Cellular stress was induced by oxidative stimuli, and EVs were isolated and characterized for their release, molecular cargo, and biological properties using biochemical and molecular approaches.

Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate that oxidative stress remodels EV release and molecular cargo, promoting the extracellular transfer of mitochondrial components, damaged nucleic acids, and inflammatory mediators. We further identify lysosomal pathways as critical regulators of EV-dependent stress communication, linking intracellular quality-control mechanisms to extracellular signaling. These studies establish redox regulation as a key determinant of extracellular vesicle communication and highlight EVs as active mediators of neuroinflammation and promising targets for biomarker discovery and therapeutic intervention in neurodegenerative diseases.

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