Wound repair and regeneration : official publication of the Wound Healing Society [and] the European Tissue Repair Society
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Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Dynamics of the matrix metalloproteinases MMP-1 and MMP-8 in acute open human dermal wounds.
Extracellular matrix degradation during dermal wound healing involves multiple levels of regulation by several enzymes of the matrix metalloproteinase family, their activators, and their inhibitors. This study tested the hypothesis that a temporal pattern of interstitial collagenase appearance occurs during normal dermal wound healing, with matrix metalloproteinase-8 originating from neutrophils appearing earlier than the fibroblast-derived matrix metalloproteinase-1. Open (6 mm) full-thickness dermal wounds, which were covered by transparent occlusive dressings, were made in healthy human volunteers (n = 20). ⋯ Tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-1 levels declined over time, whereas levels of matrix metalloproteinase-1/tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 complexes increased to a plateau on day 7. This study provides new evidence implicating matrix metalloproteinase-8 as a major collagenase in healing human dermal wounds. It also shows a temporal pattern in the appearance of the matrix metalloproteinases, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1, and matrix metalloproteinase-1/tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-1 complexes, suggesting that a tightly regulated pattern of expression of matrix metalloproteinases and their inhibitors is essential for normal wound healing in humans.