“Supermeres” May Carry Clues to Cancer, Alzheimer’s Disease, and COVID-19

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) in Nashville, Tennessee have discovered a nanoparticle released from cells, called a “supermere,” which contains enzymes, proteins, and RNA associated with multiple cancers, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s disease and even COVID-19. The discovery, reported online on December 7, 2021 in Nature Cell Biology, is a significant advance in understanding the role extracellular vesicles (EVs) and nanoparticles play in shuttling important chemical “messages” between cells, both in health and disease. The open-access article is titled “Supermeres Are Functional Extracellular Nanoparticles Replete with Disease Biomarkers and Therapeutic Targets.”