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Microscopic Scaffolding Offers a “Simple”
Solution to Treating Skin Injuries
A revolutionary dissolvable scaffold for growing new
areas of skin could provide a safer, more effective
way of treating burns, diabetic ulcers and similar injuries.
This ultra-fine, 3-dimensional scaffold, which is made
from specially developed polymers, looks similar to
tissue paper but has fibres 100 times finer. Before
it is placed over a wound, the patient’s skin
cells (obtained via a biopsy) are introduced and attach
themselves to the scaffold, multiplying until they eventually
grow over it. When placed over the wound, the scaffold
dissolves harmlessly over 6 to 8 weeks, leaving the
patient’s skin cells behind.
This new approach to skin reconstruction has been developed
by a team of chemists, materials scientists and tissue
engineers at the University of Sheffield, with funding
from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research
Council. It is designed primarily for cases involving
extensive burns where surgeons are unable to take enough
skin grafts from elsewhere on the body to cover the
damaged areas. Currently, bovine collagen** or skin
from human donors is used in these cases, but these
approaches have potential health and rejection risks.
"Simplicity is the key," says Professor Tony
Ryan, who is leading the team. "Previous attempts
to find better ways of encouraging skin cell growth
have used chemical additives and other elaborate techniques
to produce scaffolds, but their success has been limited.
We’ve found that skin cells are actually very
'smart' – it’s in their DNA to sort themselves
into the right arrangement. They just need a comparatively
uncomplicated scaffold (and each other) to help them
grow in a safe, natural way."
Microscope images of skin cells growing
on scaffold fibers. In the first (fluorescent) image
(top), the fibres are red and the cell nuclei blue;
the second image (bottom) is in normal light.
The polymers used in the scaffold are biodegradable
materials already approved for medical applications.
Because the team has recognized that skin cells are
'smart' and the scaffold can therefore be 'dumb' (i.e.
not overly sophisticated), simple polymers can be used.
The process for making the scaffolds is based on the
well-known technique of electrospinning. However, the
team has made a key advance by developing a new method
of making, from the same biodegradable polymers, aligned-fiber
'mats' of potential use in promoting nerve or tendon
growth. This method is currently being patented.
The next step in the research is to develop the skin
reconstruction technology for clinical use, hopefully
in the next few years. The technology also offers possibilities
for testing the toxicity of cosmetic and similar products,
using materials grown in the laboratory that closely
resemble natural skin.
"Ultimately, we can envisage treatment of burns
victims and the undertaking of reconstructive surgery
using the scaffold and the patient's own skin to produce
bespoke skin for that patient," says Professor
Ryan. "As an accident-prone mountain biker, I find
that prospect very attractive!"
Visit www.epsrc.ac.uk
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