The molecular mechanisms of tissue repair
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The molecular mechanisms of tissue repair
IRAS ID
137917
Contact name
Tanya Shaw
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
St George's University of London
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 11 months, 30 days
Research summary
When our skin gets cut, it is important that the wound heals quickly in order to protect us from the environment. In order to achieve this, the cells that comprise the outermost layer of skin, the epidermis, divide and migrate to cover over the wound. When a cut is sufficiently deep that the underlying tissue, the dermis, is also damaged, the cells that inhabit this dermal tissue layer, called fibroblasts, undergo dramatic changes to help draw the wound closed through contraction, and to help rebuild the lost tissue by secreting new structural proteins, such as collagen. Unfortunately, this process leads to scarring. In its mildest form, scarring may present only a minor cosmetic problem, but in the most severe cases, in which these fibroblasts are out of control, they can give rise to keloid or hypertrophic scars.
Normal tissue repair requires that cells at the wound site “reprogram”, and to acquire new characteristics that will contribute to successful repair. For example, epidermal cells at the wound margin change to become migratory and invasive, and fibroblasts of the dermis must up-regulate their expression of contractile proteins and extra-cellular matrix proteins, to help draw the wound closed and fill the wound bed. We are interested in how cellular identity changes during normal wound repair, how this plasticity may be mis-regulated in keloid and hypertrophic scars, how ageing may impact on this reprogramming and ultimately successful wound healing, and how the intrinsic ability of cells to reprogram may be harnessed for application in regenerative medicine.
REC name
North of Scotland Research Ethics Committee 2
REC reference
14/NS/1073
Date of REC Opinion
30 Oct 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion