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Simple Summary: Exosomes are nanosized vesicles secreted by living cells and exist in biological fluids. Exosomes contain various bioactive molecules, including proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids, which can reflect the pathophysiological state of donor cells. In recent years, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in exosomes have attracted wide attention in cancer research. Exosomal lncRNAs play important roles in gastrointestinal cancer progression. Blood samples-derived exosomal lncRNAs also exhibit great potential to serve as important indicators of liquid biopsy, thus providing a novel diagnosis strategy for gastrointestinal cancer. In addition, exosomes-mediated several lncRNAs delivery can exert anti-tumor effects. The aim of this review article is to summarize the recent work conducted in this field and evaluate the opportunities and challenges in utilizing exosomal lncRNAs for the diagnostic and therapeutic purposes of gastrointestinal cancer in the clinical setting. Due to the lack of specific and effective biomarkers and therapeutic targets, the early diagnosis and treatment of gastrointestinal cancer remain unsatisfactory. As a type of nanosized vesicles derived from living cells, exosomes mediate cell-to-cell communication by transporting bioactive molecules, thus participating in the regulation of many pathophysiological processes. Recent evidence has revealed that several long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are enriched in exosomes. Exosomes-mediated lncRNAs delivery is critically involved in various aspects of gastrointestinal cancer progression, such as tumor proliferation, metastasis, angiogenesis, stemness, immune microenvironment, and drug resistance. Exosomal lncRNAs represent promising candidates to act as the diagnosis biomarkers and anti-tumor targets. This review introduces the major characteristics of exosomes and lncRNAs and describes the biological functions of exosomal lncRNAs in gastrointestinal cancer development. The preclinical studies on using exosomal lncRNAs to monitor and treat gastrointestinal cancer are also discussed, and the opportunities and challenges for translating them into clinical practice are evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Two fruit fossil species of Ceratophyllum L. are discovered from South China, namely C. cf. muricatum Chamisso from the upper Eocene of the Maoming Basin, Guangdong, and C. demersum L. from the Miocene of the Guiping Basin, Guangxi. Our findings provide evidence for the distribution of Ceratophyllum in South China in the late Eocene, and its wide expansion in subtropical China during the Miocene. Ceratophyllum L. is a cosmopolitan genus of perennial aquatic herbs that occur in quiet freshwaters. Fossils of this genus have been widely reported from the Northern Hemisphere, most of them occurring in the temperate zone. Here, we describe two species of fossil fruits discovered from subtropical areas of China. The fossil fruit discovered from the upper Eocene Huangniuling Formation of the Maoming Basin is designated as C. cf. muricatum Chamisso, and fruits discovered from the Miocene Erzitang Formation of the Guiping Basin are assigned to the extant species C. demersum L. The discovery of these two fossil species indicates that Ceratophyllum had spread to South China by the late Eocene and their distribution expanded in subtropical China during the Miocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability of extracellular vesicles (EVs) to regulate a broad range of cellular processes has recently been used to treat diseases. Growing evidence indicates that EVs play a cardioprotective role in heart disease by activating beneficial signaling pathways. Multiple functional components of EVs and intracellular molecular mechanisms are involved in the process. To overcome the shortcomings of native EVs such as their heterogeneity and limited tropism, a series of engineering approaches has been developed to improve the therapeutic efficiency of EVs. In this review, we present an overview of the research and future directions for EVs-based cardiac therapies with an emphasis on EVs-mediated delivery of therapeutic agents. The advantages and limitations of various modification strategies are discussed, and possible opportunities for improvement are proposed. An in-depth understanding of the endogenous properties of EVs and EVs engineering strategies could lead to a promising cell-free therapy for cardiac repair. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]