Research progress on functionalized stem cell therapy strategies in wound healing

The repair of skin injuries, particularly in cases of refractory wounds such as diabetic foot ulcers and severe burns, remains a major clinical challenge. Conventional approaches, including debridement and skin grafting, often fall short of achieving functional regeneration. Although functionalized stem cell therapies have gained interest in recent years, the goal of high-quality functional regeneration has not yet been fully attained. Functionalized stem cells demonstrate unique advantages through multi-target regulation of inflammation, angiogenesis, and tissue remodeling. This review summarizes stem cell sources in skin repair, key functionalization strategies and recent advances in delivery systems that improve stem cell engraftment and repair efficacy. The use of functionalized stem cells represents a promising area of research for skin injury repair. While immune rejection and variable efficacy remain obstacles to clinical translation, multidisciplinary optimization of functionalization strategies may eventually lead to improved management of refractory wounds.