Past Webinar: The Double-Edged Role of Extracellular Vesicles in Alzheimer's Disease

The Double-Edged Role of Extracellular Vesicles in Alzheimer’s Disease

10:00 AM EDT, July 23rd, 2025

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are nanoscale, lipid bilayer-enclosed particles that are secreted by neural and glial cells throughout the central nervous system (CNS). Acting as intercellular messengers, EVs transport a wide array of biomolecules, including nucleic acids, proteins, and lipids that shape neuronal communication, synaptic plasticity, and brain homeostasis. In Alzheimer’s disease (AD), EVs have emerged as pivotal regulators of neuropathological processes. They modulate neuroinflammation, neuronal survival, and synaptic integrity, while also mediating the dissemination of misfolded proteins such as amyloid-β and tau across neural circuits. This dual capacity makes EVs both guardians of neuronal health. Therapeutically, strategies that dampen the pathogenic signaling of EVs while preserving their protective, homeostatic functions are being actively explored as innovative approaches to AD intervention.

Moreover, neuron- and astrocyte-derived EVs isolated from peripheral blood provide a minimally invasive “liquid biopsy” of the brain, offering a promising avenue for biomarker discovery, early diagnosis, and longitudinal monitoring of neurodegenerative diseases.

Creative Biolabs is honored to invite Dr. Francesc Guix to speak on the double-edged role of extracellular vesicles in AD.

Dr. Guix will discuss the following key points:

• Introduction of AD and the significance of EVs in the study of AD.
• EV characteristics: How nano-sized, cell-released vesicles transport nucleic acids, proteins, etc. and facilitate cell-to-cell communication.
• The role of EVs in brain physiology: EVs support communication between neurons and glia, contributing to brain homeostasis.
• The dual role of EVs in AD: EVs help clear toxic proteins but may also spread misfolded proteins (e.g., tau, Aβ) and enhance neuroinflammation.
• Therapeutic potential: Primarily discussing the application of targeted EVs for AD treatment, enhanced beneficial effects, and application as diagnostic biomarkers.

Webinar Recording

Speaker

Francesc Guix , Ph.D.

Dr. Francesc Guix is an Assistant Professor of Neuroscience at IQS–Universitat Ramon Llull, Barcelona. After earning a degree in Human Biology from Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Dr. Guix completed his PhD with Prof. Francisco José Muñoz, revealing how peroxynitrite promotes neurofibrillary tangle formation. His work was published in Brain and was preceded by a review now cited more than 900 times. Dr. Guix received postdoctoral training with Profs. Kai Simons, Bart De Strooper, Dominic Walsh and Dennis Selkoe, where their combined expertise in membrane microdomains, γ-secretase biology and proteostasis yielded high-impact papers (e.g., EMBO Molecular Medicine 2012) and a patent on tetraspanin-regulated protease activity. As a Marie Curie Fellow at the Centro de Biología Molecular “Severo Ochoa,” Dr. Guix led a team to uncover how aging neurons lose proteostatic control and alter extracellular-vesicle release, findings that underpin their current research program.

Author of more than 30 publications and Associate Editor for Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience,

Dr. Guix has received multiple competitive grants, including Spain’s “Generación del Conocimiento” and the AGAUR LLAVOR award. Additionally, he regularly reviews projects for the Spanish State Research Agency.