Rapid magnetic isolation of extracellular vesicles via lipid-based nanoprobes

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) can mediate intercellular communication by transferring cargo proteins and nucleic acids between cells. The pathophysiological roles and clinical value of EVs are under intense investigation, yet most studies are limited by technical challenges in the isolation of nanoscale EVs (nEVs). Here, we report a lipid-nanoprobe system that enables spontaneous labelling of nEVs for subsequent magnetic enrichment in 15 minutes, with isolation efficiency and cargo composition similar to what can be achieved by the much slower and bulkier method of ultracentrifugation. We also show that this approach allows for downstream analyses of nucleic acids and proteins, enabling the identification of EGFR and KRAS mutations following nEV isolation from the blood plasma of non-small-cell lung-cancer patients. The efficiency and versatility of the lipid-nanoprobe approach opens up opportunities in point-of-care cancer diagnostics.