Wound Healing Technologies and Tissue Engineering

Wound healing technologies and tissue engineering intersect materials science, cell biology and clinical practice to restore tissue integrity following injury. Traditional dressings have evolved into multifunctional systems that maintain an optimal moisture balance, prevent infection and deliver therapeutic agents. Concurrently, tissue engineering deploys scaffolds, cells and bioactive molecules to reconstruct the skin’s complex architecture. Key components include hydrogels that mimic the natural extracellular matrix, porous or fibrous scaffolds for cellular ingrowth and growth-factor delivery platforms to orchestrate the phases of healing. Advances in three-dimensional bioprinting now permit precise placement of cells and biomaterials to generate living constructs. The integration of nanotechnology, responsive polymers and tailored mechanical properties has yielded dressings and implants that actively modulate inflammation, promote angiogenesis and support re-epithelialisation. Such innovations hold global significance for diabetic ulcers, burns and chronic wounds, offering improved outcomes and reduced scarring.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Researchers have developed an all-peptide, cell-printing hydrogel platform using click chemistry to fabricate a living dressing laden with endothelial cells overexpressing vascular endothelial growth factor. This construct accelerates angiogenesis, alleviates hypoxia and reduces inflammation in diabetic wound models, leading to enhanced extracellular matrix remodelling. In a complementary approach, a hybrid scaffold combining polyvinyl alcohol/sodium alginate hydrogel with microspheres encapsulating basic fibroblast growth factor achieves sustained, burst-free release. This system exhibits favourable porosity, mechanical resilience and biocompatibility and significantly improves burn-wound closure and tissue regeneration in preclinical studies.

Wound Healing Technologies and Tissue Engineering publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in wound healing technologies and tissue engineering across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Hydrogel: A water-swollen, crosslinked polymer network that mimics the extracellular matrix and can encapsulate cells or drugs.

Scaffold: A three-dimensional structure, often porous, designed to support cell adhesion, proliferation and tissue formation.

Angiogenesis: The growth of new blood vessels from pre-existing vasculature, critical for nutrient delivery in healing tissue.

Extracellular matrix (ECM): The complex network of proteins and glycosaminoglycans providing structural and biochemical support to cells.

Re-epithelialisation: The migration and proliferation of epithelial cells to restore the skin’s surface barrier after injury.

Click chemistry: A class of rapid, high-yield chemical reactions used to link molecular building blocks under mild conditions, often employed in hydrogel fabrication.

References

1. A click chemistry-mediated all-peptide cell printing hydrogel platform for diabetic wound healing. Nature Communications (2023).
2. Development of a polyvinyl alcohol/sodium alginate hydrogel-based scaffold incorporating bFGF-encapsulated microspheres for accelerated wound healing. Scientific Reports (2020).
3. Directional transport of drug droplets based on structural and wettability gradients on antibacterial Janus wound plaster with hemostatic, antiextravasation, and prehealing properties. Advanced Composites and Hybrid Materials (2023).
4. Anti‐inflammatory hydrogel dressings and skin wound healing. Clinical and Translational Medicine (2022).
5. Nanocomposite scaffolds for accelerating chronic wound healing by enhancing angiogenesis. Journal of Nanobiotechnology (2021).