Physical and chemical characteristics of many EVs, as well as their biogenesis pathways, resemble those of retroviruses. Moreover, EVs generated by virus-infected cells can incorporate viral proteins and fragments of viral RNA.
EVs, depending on the proteins and genetic material incorporated in them, play a significant role in viral infection, both facilitating and suppressing it. Deciphering the mechanisms of EV-cell interactions may facilitate the design of EVs that inhibit viral infection.
PNAS August 16, 2016 113 (33) 9155-9161; first published July 18, 2016 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1605146113