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The Role of Genetics on Wound Contraction in a Porcine Model
Author(s) -
GallantBehm C.L.,
Hart D.A.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
wound repair and regeneration
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.847
H-Index - 109
eISSN - 1524-475X
pISSN - 1067-1927
DOI - 10.1111/j.1067-1927.2005.130215y.x
Subject(s) - wound healing , contraction (grammar) , hyperpigmentation , backcrossing , phenotype , biology , scars , gene , pathology , genetics , medicine , endocrinology
Pigs have been accepted as good models for skin wound healing research due to their anatomical similarities to humans. The healing response of excisional wounds in juvenile female Yorkshire (Y) pigs closely resembles normal healing in humans. In contrast, identical wounds in female red Duroc (RD) pigs contracted significantly more, resulting in an 80–90% reduction in wound area. This hypercontraction was associated with marked hyperpigmentation at the wound margins, and some features of the RD healing phenotype, such as increased collagen deposition, are similar to hypertrophic scar formation in humans. Recent investigations have begun to elucidate the genetic transmissibility of the RD healing phenotype. Skin wounds were created on Y × RD F1 female animals (N = 8), and while hyperpigmentation was not observed, the hypercontraction prevalent in the RD persisted in 100% of animals studied. Further, the degree and kinetics of contraction observed in the F1 animals was significantly greater than in the RD. All F1 animals were subsequently bred to a single Yorkshire boar, producing a cohort of 20 female backcross animals. Healing in the backcross animals generally followed the Y phenotype with regard to wound contraction and pigmentation. However, between days 28 and 56, the backcross animals demonstrated significantly less contraction than the Yorkshire animals. These results suggest that the regulation of wound contraction is controlled by a restricted number of major genes and an unidentified number of other genes, which may positively or negatively modulate the influence of the major genes, as observed in the F1 and backcross animals. These studies have begun the process of elucidating the molecular basis for abnormal skin wound healing and scarring. Further ongoing studies are using genomic and proteomic approaches to further elucidate candidate genes potentially involved in the RD healing phenotype. Acknowledgments: Funding provided by CIHR and NSERC