Colostrum-derived Exosomes as a Novel Cancer Therapeutic Delivery Device
Colostrum-derived Exosomes as a Novel Cancer Therapeutic Delivery Device
About Me
Hi everyone! My name is Wenhao Wu and I go by William. I am a Biology major with biochemistry emphasis and statistics. My family works in the pharmaceutical field, which influences me with interests in medicine. I took molecular medicine in the fall 2025, which also led me to this capstone project. After graduation, I would plan to go to grad school to have deeper learning on biomedical engineering. Outside of school, I love music, play drum kits, body exercise and reading books.
Abstract
According to the World Health Organization, cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide, causing approximately 9.7–10 million deaths annually. Although chemotherapy and radiation therapy remain standard treatments, their severe side effects and risk of resistance highlight the need for safer and more effective therapeutic strategies. This literature review focuses on a novel drug delivery platform based on colostrum-derived exosomes, specifically examining camel milk–derived exosomes in breast cancer models. The study demonstrated that both camel milk and its exosomes significantly inhibited MCF7 breast cancer cell proliferation and migration in a dose-dependent manner. In tumor-bearing rats, treatment reduced tumor weight, increased DNA fragmentation and caspase-3 activity, upregulated the pro-apoptotic gene Bax, and downregulated the anti-apoptotic gene Bcl2. Additionally, oxidative stress, inflammation, angiogenesis, and metastasis-related markers were suppressed, while immune cell populations were enhanced. Overall, this exosome treatment indicates a new possible therapeutic strategy for breast cancer.