Towards Understanding the Role of the Glycosylation of Proteins Present in Extracellular Vesicles in Urinary Tract Diseases: Contributions to Cancer and Beyond - Review

Sep 21, 2026

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are nanoscale, phospholipid-bilayer particles that mediate intercellular transfer of bioactive molecules. Released EVs occur in many human biofluids and can be isolated for diagnostic use, where EVs may provide circulating disease biomarkers. Protein glycosylation regulates key biological processes, and abnormal glycosylation is a hallmark of multiple diseases. EVs carry diverse glycoproteins, yet their specific EV-linked functions remain insufficiently defined, including in cancers and urinary tract disorders. Urine is a particularly rich, non-invasive source enabling isolation and glycosylation studies, supporting diagnostic and prognostic potential.

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1. Introduction

Review Towards Understanding the Role of the Glycosylation of Proteins Present in Extracellular Vesicles in Urinary Tract Diseases: Contributions to Cancer and Beyond Magdalena Wilczak 1,2,†, Magdalena Surman 1,† and Małgorzata Przybyło 1, * Citation: Wilczak, M.; Surman, M.; Przybyło, M. Towards Understanding the Role of the Glycosylation of Proteins Present in Extracellular Vesicles in Urinary Tract Diseases: Contributions to Cancer and Beyond. Molecules 2024, 29, 5241. [https://](https://)[ ](https://)[doi.org/10.3390/molecules29225241](doi.org/10.3390/molecules29225241) Academic Editor: Pierangela Ciuffreda Received: 27 September 2024 Revised: 28 October 2024 Accepted: 4 November 2024 Published: 6 November 2024 Copyright: © 2024 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ([https://](https://)[ ](https://)[creativecommons.org/licenses/by/](creativecommons.org/licenses/by/)[ ](creativecommons.org/licenses/by/)[4.0/](4.0/)) . 1 Department of Glycoconjugate Biochemistry, Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 9 Street, 30-387 Krakow, Poland; [magdalena.wilczak@doctoral.uj.edu.pl](magdalena.wilczak@doctoral.uj.edu.pl) (M.W.); [magdalena.surman@uj.edu.pl](magdalena.surman@uj.edu.pl) (M.S.) 2 Doctoral School of Exact and Natural Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Prof. S. Lojasiewicza 11 Street, 30-348 Krakow, Poland * [Correspondence: malgorzata.przybylo@uj.edu.pl](Correspondence: malgorzata.przybylo@uj.edu.pl); Tel.: +48-12-664-6462 † These authors contributed equally to this work. Abstract: Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are a population of nanoscale particles surrounded by a phospholipid bilayer, enabling intercellular transfer of bioactive molecules. Once released from the parental cell, EVs can be found in most biological fluids in the human body and can be isolated from them. For this reason, EVs have significant diagnostic potential and can serve as an excellent source of circulating disease biomarkers. Protein glycosylation plays a key role in many biological processes, and aberrant glycosylation is a hallmark of various diseases. EVs have been shown to carry multiple glycoproteins, but little is known about the specific biological roles of these glycoproteins in the context of EVs. Moreover, specific changes in EV glycosylation have been described for several diseases, including cancers and metabolic, cardiovascular, neurological or kidney diseases. Urine is the richest source of EVs, providing almost unlimited (in terms of volume) opportunities for non-invasive EV isolation. Recent studies have also revealed a pathological link between urinary EVglycosylation and urological cancers, as well as other pathologies of the urinary tract. In this review, we discuss recent research advances in this field and the diagnostic/prognostic potential of urinary EV glycosylation. In addition, we summarize common methods for isolating EVs from urine and techniques used to study their glycosylation. Keywords: bladder cancer; extracellular vesicles; glycosylation; prostate cancer; renal cancer; urinary tract; urine 1. Introduction Research on biomarkers present in physiological fluids focuses on finding new biomarkers, increasing the sensitivity of their detection, developing more efficient sample preparation techniques, and introducing new, easier and less expensive analytical methods. This research area focuses mainly on samples derived from blood and serum, but cerebrospinal fluid and urine are also good media for diagnosing multiple diseases. Urine is produced in the kidneys and concentrates/accumulates metabolic products, especially nitrogencontaining substances that must be constantly removed from blood. Water, salts, urea, organic compounds, proteins, hormones and a wide range of other metabolit

FAQs

What makes extracellular vesicles (EVs) useful for diagnosis?

EVs are present in many human biofluids and can be isolated. Their contents can act as circulating biomarkers, supporting diagnostic and prognostic potential.

Why is glycosylation important in the context of diseases?

Protein glycosylation regulates many biological processes, and aberrant glycosylation is a hallmark of diverse diseases. EVs can contain multiple glycoproteins whose changes may reflect pathology.

Why does the review emphasize urinary EV glycosylation?

Urine is described as the richest EV source and enables non-invasive isolation with flexible sample volume. Studies link urinary EV glycosylation changes to urological cancers and other urinary tract pathologies.

Sep 21, 2026

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