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.
Highlights
During the repair of a wound proceeds, keloid and hypertrophic scars (HTS) are a common problem
Longer keratinocyte migration tongue and collagen expression was observed on day 14 for Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF)-treated wounds; the results demonstrated the accelerating effect of bFGF on the wound reepithelization in vivo
They found that no patient treated with bFGF had hypertrophic scars, while some patients had hypertrophic or very wide scars in the control group; the ratios of minimum scarring for the bFGF treatment group were statistically significantly higher than those of control group
Summary
During the repair of a wound proceeds, keloid and hypertrophic scars (HTS) are a common problem. They are characterized by excessive deposition of collagen in the dermis and subcutaneous tissues secondary to traumatic. This process is regulated by cytokines and growth factors such as transforming growth factor b (TGF-b), epidermal growth factor (EGF), fibroblast growth factor (FGF) and platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) [1]. BFGF-knockout mice delayed healing of skin wounds [10], which means that bFGF plays a key role for wound healing
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