Expression of Genes Responsible for Wound Healing in Dermal Fibroblasts under Hypoxia

During wound healing, which is accompanied by hypoxia at the initial stages, the gene expression profile in fibroblasts shifts to facilitate the synthesis of proteins necessary for tissue restoration. In this study, we describe the influence of various parameters, in particular oxygenation and CO₂ levels in the culture medium, on the implementation of fibroblast wound healing potential, assessed by the expression of HIF-1α-dependent and HIF-1α-independent genes. The presented cell hypoxic conditioning system demonstrates a possible approach to the treatment of chronic non-healing skin wounds based on the use of biocompatible and biodegradable scaffolds seeded with hypoxia-activated fibroblasts.