Related Experiment Videos
The proteolytic environment of chronic wounds
1Plastic Surgery Research Laboratory, Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond 23298-0117, USA. dyager@hsc.vcu.edu
Abstract:
A consistent feature of chronic leg and pressure ulcers is chronic inflammation associated with an elevated infiltration of neutrophils. Neutrophils and their proteases have been implicated in mediating the tissue damage associated with a variety of chronic inflammatory diseases. This review discusses our current understanding of the proteolytic enzymes found in chronic wounds and attempts to relate this information to the abundant presence of neutrophils. In addition, the implications that the proteolytic environment may have for current and future treatment strategies of chronic nonhealing wounds are discussed.