Experimental study of comparing rhEGF with rhβFGF on improving the quality of wound healing

The mechanism and biological effects of comparing recombinant human epidermal growth factor (rhEGF) with recombinant human basic fibroblast growth factor (rhβFGF) were evaluated on the model of incised wounds on ventral side of rabbit's ears in order to direct their medication in clinical. Total of 72 incised wounds on ventral side of 24 New Zealand rabbits' ears were divided randomly into two therapeutic groups (rhEGF group with 10 μg/cm(2) and rhβFGF group with 100 AU/cm(2)) and a control group (1% silver sulfadiazine cream, SD-Ag). The observation of wounds, the measurements of healing wound area, the calculation of wound closing index, the histopathological examination, the electrical microscopic examination, and the expression of examining integrin β1 mRNA of samples of three groups by in situ hybridization technique were used to evaluate the results of wound healing. The results showed that the wound healing was accelerated in all wounds treated with rhEGF and rhβFGF, and the quality of healing wounds of two therapeutic groups was better than that of the control group. In rhβFGF group, new granulation tissue was more than that of rhEGF group in earlier period and metaphase of healing wound, however, the velocity of re-epithelialization in rhEGF group was faster than that of rhβFGF group in metaphase and late period. The results indicate that rhEGF and rhβFGF can improve wound healing, but the detailed mechanisms and the biological effects were different. rhβFGF may be used to promote the growth of granulation tissue in earlier period and metaphase of healing wound, however, rhEGF may be used to accelerate the velocity of re-epithelialization in metaphase and late period. That rhβFGF and rhEGF were utilized in sequence can not only accelerate the velocity of healing wound and promote the quality of healing wound but also obtain the best ratio of effects versus value.