MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are central players in cancer biology. Their relevance in cancer development, progression and resistance to therapy has been further emphasized by the discovery that they are important cargo component of extracellular vesicles (EVs), which represent a prominent means of inter-cellular communication within the tumor microenvironment (TME). This review article focuses on the interaction between cancer cells and tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) and in particular on the pro-tumoral phenotype elicited by EV-contained miRNAs released by TAMs and transferred to cancer cells. All main hallmarks of the malignant phenotype are affected by TAM-derived vesicular miRNAs, paving the road to the identification of such miRNAs as promising upcoming novel anti-cancer agents.

微小 RNA (miRNA) 是癌症生物学的核心参与者。它们在癌症发展、进展和治疗耐药性方面的相关性得到进一步强调，因为它们是细胞外囊泡 (EV) 的重要货物成分，代表了肿瘤微环境 (TME) 内细胞间通讯的重要方式。这篇综述文章重点关注癌细胞与肿瘤相关巨噬细胞 (TAM) 之间的相互作用，特别是 TAM 释放并转移至癌细胞的含有 EV 的 miRNA 引发的促肿瘤表型。恶性表型的所有主要特征都受到 TAM 衍生的囊泡 miRNA 的影响，这为将此类 miRNA 鉴定为有前途的新型抗癌药物铺平了道路。