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The anti-scar effects of basic fibroblast growth factor on the wound repair in vitro and in vivo.

Authors :
Shi HX
Lin C
Lin BB
Wang ZG
Zhang HY
Wu FZ
Cheng Y
Xiang LJ
Guo DJ
Luo X
Zhang GY
Fu XB
Bellusci S
Li XK
Xiao J
Source :
PloS one [PLoS One] 2013; Vol. 8 (4), pp. e59966. Date of Electronic Publication: 2013 Apr 02.
Publication Year :
2013

Abstract

Hypertrophic scars (HTS) and keloids are challenging problems. Their pathogenesis results from an overproduction of fibroblasts and excessive deposition of collagen. Studies suggest a possible anti-scarring effect of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) during wound healing, but the precise mechanisms of bFGF are still unclear. In view of this, we investigated the therapeutic effects of bFGF on HTS animal model as well as human scar fibroblasts (HSF) model. We show that bFGF promoted wound healing and reduced the area of flattened non-pathological scars in rat skin wounds and HTS in the rabbit ear. We provide evidence of a new therapeutic strategy: bFGF administration for the treatment of HTS. The scar elevation index (SEI) and epidermal thickness index (ETI) was also significantly reduced. Histological reveal that bFGF exhibited significant amelioration of the collagen tissue. bFGF regulated extracellular matrix (ECM) synthesis and degradation via interference in the collagen distribution, the α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and transforming growth factor-1 (TGF-β1) expression. In addition, bFGF reduced scarring and promoted wound healing by inhibiting TGFβ1/SMAD-dependent pathway. The levels of fibronectin (FN), tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1) collagen I, and collagen III were evidently decreased, and matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) and apoptosis cells were markedly increased. These results suggest that bFGF possesses favorable therapeutic effects on hypertrophic scars in vitro and in vivo, which may be an effective cure for human hypertrophic scars.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1932-6203
Volume :
8
Issue :
4
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
PloS one
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
23565178
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0059966