Extracellular vesicles and energy metabolism

Glycolytic enzymes are among the most frequently identified proteins in proteomics of exosomes/extracellular vesicles. This review brings up the possibility that exosomes/extracellular vesicles during their life-time in bodily fluids power important energy-consuming functions by glycolytic conversion of glucose or fructose into ATP. It was seen that prostasomes (exosomes of the prostate) could produce ATP by glycolysis and that the produced ATP quickly was consumed by adjacent prostasomal ATPases. The glycolytic ATP production appeared to be coupled to self-sustaining energy requirements. It will also be discussed how a failure in this machinery (lowered activity of ATPases) with a resultant polluting leakage of extracellular ATP could affect cancer development.