Evaluation of bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells for full-thickness wound healing in comparison to tissue engineered chitosan scaffold in rabbit.

BACKGROUND: Chronic wounds present a major challenge in modern medicine. Even under optimal conditions, the healing process may lead to scarring and fibrosis. The ability of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) to differentiate into other cell types makes these cells an attractive therapeutic tool for cell transplantation. Both tissue-engineered construct and MSC therapy are among the current wound healing procedures and potential care. Chitosan has been widely applied in tissue engineering because of its biocompatibility and biodegradability.

AIM: The aim of the current work was to compare the efficiency of MSCs and chitosan dressing, alone or in combination treatment on wound healing.

METHODS: This study was conducted on 15 rabbits, which were randomly divided in 3 groups based on the type of treatment with MSCs, chitosan dressing and combination of both. A full-thickness skin defect was excised from the right and left side of the back of each animals. Defects on right sides were filled with treatments and left side defects were left as control. Evaluation of the therapeutic effectiveness was performed through a variety of clinical and microscopical evaluations and measurements of the process of wound healing on days 7, 14, 21, and 28. Histological evaluation of wound healing was classified by different scoring systems.

RESULTS: The data indicated that wounds treated with bone marrow derived MSC had enhanced cellularity and better epidermal regeneration. During the early stages of wound healing, the closure rate of bone marrow derived MSC-treated wounds were significantly higher than other treatments (P<0.05). Although the MSCs in the wound edges enhance the healing of the full-thickness wound, the healing process of chitosan treatment was slower than the control group.

CONCLUSION: This study revealed advanced granulation tissue formation and epithelialization in wounds treated with MSCs, and may suggests this treatment as an effective applicant in wound healing process. Chitosan scaffold dressings, whether alone or in combination with MSCs, have worsened the wound healing as compared to the control group.