Dedifferentiation of epidermal cells to stem cells in vivo

The effects of growth factors on wound healing have been studied extensively; however epidermal regeneration is not fully understood. We treated eight patients with leg ulcers with recombinant human epidermal growth factor (rhEGF) and compared biopsies of regenerating epidermis with those of control...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Lancet (British edition) 2001-09, Vol.358 (9287), p.1067-1068
Main Authors: Fu, Xiaobing, Sun, Xiaoqing, Li, Xiaokun, Sheng, Zhiyong
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Biological and medical sciences
Biopsy
Case-Control Studies
Cell cycle
Cell Differentiation
Cell division
Epidermal growth factor
Epidermal Growth Factor - therapeutic use
Epidermis
Growth factors
Humans
Immunohistochemistry
Injuries
Integrin beta1 - biosynthesis
Islands
Keratin
Keratins - biosynthesis
Leg Ulcer - drug therapy
Leg Ulcer - metabolism
Leg Ulcer - pathology
Leg ulcers
Medical research
Medical sciences
Patients
Pharmacology. Drug treatments
Regeneration
Reversion
Skin - metabolism
Skin - pathology
Skin, nail, hair, dermoskeleton
Stem cells
Stem Cells - physiology
Ulcers
Wound healing
Wound Healing - drug effects
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Summary:The effects of growth factors on wound healing have been studied extensively; however epidermal regeneration is not fully understood. We treated eight patients with leg ulcers with recombinant human epidermal growth factor (rhEGF) and compared biopsies of regenerating epidermis with those of controls who did not receive rhEGF. We used immunohistochemistry to identify cells expressing keratin 19 and β1 integrin in regenerated epidermis from patients and controls. Patients treated with rhEGF had stem cells in the spinous and granular layers of regenerated epidermis. Histological analysis showed that these stem cells had reverted from differentiated to undifferentiated stem cells. Our findings provide evidence for epidermal cell reversion.
ISSN:0140-6736
1474-547X
DOI:10.1016/S0140-6736(01)06202-X