Endothelial extracellular vesicles preserve vascular smooth muscle cell identity but do not reverse endothelial senescence
Vascular aging is characterized by endothelial senescence and vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) phenotypic switching, yet the role of endothelial extracellular vesicles (EVs) in these processes remains unclear. We show that EVs from non-senescent endothelial cells prevent PDGF-BB-induced VSMC dedifferentiation, preserving contractile markers and limiting migration. In endothelial cells, EVs protected against TNF-α-induced eNOS downregulation but failed to reverse inflammatory and mitochondrial features of senescence after short-term exposure, highlighting a context-dependent protective role.
Authors
- Dánica Jiménez-Gallegos (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-2545-9113)
- Sebastián Urquiza-Zurich (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8064-330X)
- Sergio Lavandero (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4258-1483)
- Ximena Calle (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9338-6795)
- Camila López-Torres
- Valentina Parra (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0080-6472)
- Magda C. Díaz‐Vesga (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7807-2050)
- Úrsula Zúñiga-Cuevas (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9409-4612)
- Andrés Ramírez-Reyes (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2101-3711)
- Leslye Venegas-Zamora (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7726-8801)
- Ignacio Norambuena‐Soto
- Jaime A. Riquelme
- Mayarling F. Troncoso
- Vania Otárola-Urrutia
- Alejandra Hernández
- Mario Chiong
- Javiera Favi-Coloma
- Constanza Rimassa-Taré
Institutions
- Universidad de Santiago de Chile (CL)
- City of Hope (US)
- Advanced Center for Chronic Diseases (CL)
- Instituto de Neurociencia Biomédica (CL)
- University of O'Higgins (CL)
- University of Chile (CL)
- The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- npj Aging
- Published
- 2026-06-26
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41514-026-00438-x
- Primary Topic
- Extracellular vesicles in disease
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo
- Fondo de Financiamiento de Centros de Investigación en Áreas Prioritarias