Oxidative and other posttranslational modifications in extracellular vesicle biology

•Extracellular vesicles are increasingly recognised players of intercellular communication.•Most frequently studied posttranslational modifications include glycosylation, phosphorylation, oxidation and citrullination.•Posttranslational modifications have major impact on vesicle biogenesis, cargo sorting and vesicular uptake.•Enzymes capable of carrying out posttranslational modifications are transported by extracellular vesicles.•Characteristic posttranslational modifications of extracellular vesicle proteins may associate with specific pathophysiological processes. Extracellular vesicles including exosomes, microvesicles and apoptotic vesicles, are phospholipid bilayer surrounded structures secreted by cells universally, in an evolutionarily conserved fashion. Posttranslational modifications such as oxidation, citrullination, phosphorylation and glycosylation play diverse roles in extracellular vesicle biology. Posttranslational modifications orchestrate the biogenesis of extracellular vesicles. The signals extracellular vesicles transmit between cells also often function via modulating posttranslational modifications of target molecules, given that extracellular vesicles are carriers of several active enzymes catalysing posttranslational modifications. Posttranslational modifications of extracellular vesicles can also contribute to disease pathology by e.g. amplifying inflammation, generating neoepitopes or carrying neoepitopes themselves.