Wound healing and regeneration in spiny mice (Acomys cahirinus)

The winds of Patagonia are referred to by locals as "The Broom of God" because they sweep away the less fit species that cannot survive there. Fitness as an evolutionary trait has been considered as fundamental for many aspects of morphogenesis and behavior in metazoans. Yet, it has not received much attention in the area of wound healing, despite the obvious relevance of this polygenic trait to an organism's survival in nature. In this chapter, we review the evidence that the rodent species Acomys cahirinus is an emerging mammalian model system that has evolved a non-typical (for mammals) wound healing response that offers unique opportunities for the study of organ regeneration without fibrosis in an adult mammalian species.