Topical mitomycin-C reduced number of myofibroblasts in healing anoplasty wounds in Wistar rats

Abstract

Abstract Background : Mitomycin-C (MMC) has been used for treating stricture. Topical MMC has been proven to inhibit fibroblasts proliferation and reduce the number of fibroblasts. Myofibroblasts are originally from fibroblasts. The scarring potential of myofibroblasts has been documented in many anatomical sites. The purpose of this study is to analyze the effect of topical MMC on myofibroblasts in healing anoplasty wounds in Wistar rats. Methods : An anoplasty procedure was performed on Wistar rats (n=30) that were subsequently randomly placed into two equal groups; i.e., control and treated groups. In the treated group, topical mitomycin-C was applied to the wound following the anoplasty procedure. Five rats in each group were weekly sacrificed. The myofibroblasts in tissue samples were identified by immunohistochemical analysis of alpha-smooth muscle actin. The total of myofibroblasts was evaluated by scoring methods. The Mann-Whitney test was used to analyze the statistical significance of differences, and p values below 0.05 were considered to be significant. Results : The median myofibroblasts scores in the first week for the treated and control groups were 5 and 9, respectively. In the second and third week, the median myofibroblasts scores were 6 for both groups. Statistical evaluations revealed significant differences between the groups only in the first week (p=0.007). Conclusions : Topical MMC reduced the myofibroblasts in the first week of healing anoplasty wounds in Wistar rats.