the course is divided into 5 modules , where the leading experts in the field provide online lectures within their area of expertise ( table i ) . during the first module of the course
therefore , topics that are covered during the introduction week are the nomenclature for the different subpopulations of evs as well as an introduction to the diversity of organisms releasing evs and the tissues and body fluids where evs can be found . furthermore , one of the pioneers , professor emeritus philip stahl , shares the story about how he and his colleagues discovered exosomes in the early 1980s ( 4 ) .
the second module focuses on the biogenesis and release of evs and how this differs between the ev subpopulations : exosomes and microvesicles .
additionally , the different uptake mechanisms of evs when they are encountered by a recipient cell are covered in depth ( 10 ) .
as evs have been shown to contain functional rnas , proteins and lipids , this module also covers the different types of molecules present in evs as well as a brief overview on what the potential functions of these molecules are .
furthermore , the techniques that are commonly used to detect these molecules and to analyse the cargo of evs will be highlighted . in the third module ,
the focus is on the collection and processing of cell culture media and body fluids prior to isolation of evs . here ,
considerations and guidelines that are important during the collection of the ev - containing material and when isolating evs from these fluids are discussed ( 11,12 ) .
this module will help the students to reflect over the many different choices , such as anticoagulants , collection time points and protein inhibitors , which are important for the outcome when working with a particular body fluid compared with conditioned media or other body fluids .
this module also illustrates some examples of studies on evs from body fluids such as blood , urine , breast milk and cerebrospinal fluid and why it is of interest to analyse evs from these bodily fluids .
the basic concepts and some guidelines for methods such as differential ultracentrifugation , density gradient centrifugation , size - exclusion chromatography and kit - based precipitation are covered .
furthermore , this module covers how the techniques are used in the field of evs as well as their limitations and benefits .
the importance of evaluating the heterogeneity , purity and characteristics of the isolated vesicles regardless of isolation method is also highlighted ( 13 ) .
the fifth module covers some of the different techniques that can be used to characterise evs . here
, the basic concepts for techniques such as electron microscopy , cryo - transmission electron microscopy ( cryo - tem ) , flow cytometry , atomic - force microscopy ( afm ) and nanoparticle - tracking analysis ( nta ) are covered .
furthermore , this module covers how the techniques are used in the field of evs as well as their limitations and benefits .
this course is recommended for anyone interested in the field of evs including biology and medical students and phd students without previous experience in the field as well as clinicians , cell and molecular biologists and researchers who want to broaden their understanding of the field and deepen their knowledge about particular techniques .
the course contains 5 modules , where each module contains 47 recorded lectures ( 635 min / lecture ) .
each module contains in total 12.5 h of recorded materials , and all lectures are in english .
each of the 5 modules is followed by a quiz in the format of multiple choice questions .
after completing the course , the student should be able to : discuss the nomenclature and subgroups of evs , describe the release and uptake mechanisms of evs , describe the rna , protein and lipid content of evs , explain the considerations that are important during the collection and isolation of evs from different body fluids , describe the basic concepts about the most common isolation and characterisation techniques and how these techniques are used in the ev field andstate the benefits and limitations of the most common isolation and characterisation techniques for evs . 
 
discuss the nomenclature and subgroups of evs , describe the release and uptake mechanisms of evs , describe the rna , protein and lipid content of evs , explain the considerations that are important during the collection and isolation of evs from different body fluids , describe the basic concepts about the most common isolation and characterisation techniques and how these techniques are used in the ev field and state the benefits and limitations of the most common isolation and characterisation techniques for evs . 

the initial response to the course has been overall positive with high ratings , and one student commented the course as : this course was really well organized and paced but packed full of a lot of really good information from great sources and leaders in the field .
i really did n't know anything about exosomes before i started this course and now i feel like i can even teach the people in my own lab a few tricks . 
 
this course was really well organized and paced but packed full of a lot of really good information from great sources and leaders in the field .
i really did n't know anything about exosomes before i started this course and now i feel like i can even teach the people in my own lab a few tricks .
we are pleased to see this initial feedback to the course and isev will now initiate the work of producing more online courses on other related topics such as the biological functions of evs in health and disease .
this course was funded by the international society for extracellular vesicles and supported by grants for pedagogic development from the sahlgrenska academy , university of gothenburg .
ysg is the inventor of patents for using evs as therapeutics , diagnostics and vaccines and is the founder of aeon medix and rosetta exosome and own stock in the company .
jl is the co - owner of patents for using exosomes as therapeutics and is currently an employee of codiak biosciences , inc . in parallel with his position at university of gothenburg .
 the international society for extracellular vesicles ( isev ) has organised its first educational online course for students and beginners in the field of extracellular vesicles ( evs ) . 
 this course ,  basics of extracellular vesicles ,  uses recorded lectures from experts in the field and will be open for an unlimited number of participants . 
 the course is divided into 5 modules and can be accessed at www.coursera.org/learn/extracellular-vesicles . 
 the first module is an introduction to the field covering the nomenclature and history of evs . 
 module 2 focuses on the biogenesis and uptake mechanisms of evs , as well as their rna , protein and lipid cargo . 
 module 3 covers the collection and processing of cell culture media and body fluids such as blood , breast milk , cerebrospinal fluid and urine prior to isolation of evs . 
 modules 4 and 5 present different isolation methods and characterisation techniques utilised in the ev field . 
 here , differential ultracentrifugation , size - exclusion chromatography , density gradient centrifugation , kit - based precipitation , electron microscopy , cryo - electron microscopy , flow cytometry , atomic - force microscopy and nanoparticle - tracking analysis are covered . 
 this first massive open online course ( mooc ) on evs was launched on 15 august 2016 at the platform  
 coursera  and is free of charge . 