Connexin 43-Based Therapeutics for Dermal Wound Healing

The most ubiquitous gap junction protein within the body, connexin 43 (Cx43), is a target of interest for modulating the dermal wound healing response. Observational studies found associations between Cx43 at the wound edge and poor healing response, and subsequent studies utilizing local knockdown...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of molecular sciences 2018-06, Vol.19 (6), p.1778
Main Authors: Montgomery, Jade, Ghatnekar, Gautam S, Grek, Christina L, Moyer, Kurtis E, Gourdie, Robert G
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Cicatrix - drug therapy
Cicatrix - metabolism
Clinical trials
Connexin 43
Connexin 43 - chemistry
Connexin 43 - genetics
Connexin 43 - metabolism
Diabetes mellitus
Diabetic Foot - drug therapy
Diabetic Foot - metabolism
Humans
Medical research
Peptide Fragments - pharmacology
Peptide Fragments - therapeutic use
Proteins
Review
Skin
Skin - drug effects
Skin - metabolism
Ulcers
Wound healing
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Summary:The most ubiquitous gap junction protein within the body, connexin 43 (Cx43), is a target of interest for modulating the dermal wound healing response. Observational studies found associations between Cx43 at the wound edge and poor healing response, and subsequent studies utilizing local knockdown of Cx43 found improvements in wound closure rate and final scar appearance. Further preclinical work conducted using Cx43-based peptide therapeutics, including alpha connexin carboxyl terminus 1 (αCT1), a peptide mimetic of the Cx43 carboxyl terminus, reported similar improvements in wound healing and scar formation. Clinical trials and further study into the mode of action have since been conducted on αCT1, and Phase III testing for treatment of diabetic foot ulcers is currently underway. Therapeutics targeting connexin activity show promise in beneficially modulating the human body’s natural healing response for improved patient outcomes across a variety of injuries.
ISSN:1422-0067
1661-6596
1422-0067
DOI:10.3390/ijms19061778