Hypoxia-preconditioned gingiva-derived mesenchymal stem cell-conditioned medium accelerates burn wound healing

Area of Science:

• Regenerative Medicine
• Biomaterials Science
• Wound Healing Research

Background:

• Burn injuries present complex challenges due to the wound microenvironment and donor skin limitations.
• Gingival mesenchymal stem cells (GMSCs) offer therapeutic potential due to their regenerative and immunomodulatory properties.
• GMSC-derived conditioned medium (CM) is explored as a cell-free therapy, with hypoxic preconditioning enhancing efficacy.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effects of hypoxia-preconditioned GMSC-CM (HP-GMSC-CM) on burn wound healing.
• To evaluate the in vitro and in vivo therapeutic potential of HP-GMSC-CM.

Main Methods:

• Human GMSC-CM was subjected to hypoxic preconditioning.
• In vitro studies used HaCaT keratinocytes and M1-polarized macrophages.
• In vivo studies utilized a murine burn model.
• Mechanistic studies involved PI3K/AKT pathway inhibition using LY294002.

Main Results:

• HP-GMSC-CM promoted keratinocyte migration and scratch wound closure in vitro.
• HP-GMSC-CM upregulated LAMC2 and COL4A1 expression in keratinocytes.
• HP-GMSC-CM suppressed pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion (TNF-α, IL-1β) from macrophages.
• In vivo, HP-GMSC-CM accelerated burn wound closure and increased Pan-CK and TNC expression.
• Therapeutic effects were partially mediated by the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

Conclusions:

• Hypoxia-preconditioned GMSC-CM is an effective cell-free therapeutic strategy for burn wound repair.
• HP-GMSC-CM demonstrates potential for translational applications in regenerative medicine.
• The PI3K/AKT pathway plays a role in the therapeutic mechanisms of HP-GMSC-CM.