(Press-News.org) Contact information: Diana Kenney
dkenney@mbl.edu
508-289-7139
Marine Biological Laboratory
Mechanisms of wound healing are clarified in MBL zebrafish study
WOODS HOLE, Mass.— A crucial component of wound healing in many animals, including humans, is the migration of nearby skin cells toward the center of the wound. These cells fill the wound in and help prevent infection while new skin cells regenerate.
How do these neighboring skin cells know which way to migrate? What directional cues are they receiving from the wound site? A new paper by Mark Messerli and David Graham of the MBL's Eugene Bell Center for Regenerative Biology and Tissue Engineering clarifies the role of calcium signaling in this medically significant communication between skin cells.
Messerli and Graham conducted the study using zebrafish skin cells, which migrate much faster than human cells. "Fish have to heal quickly," Messerli says. "They are surrounded by microbes and fungi in the water. They are constantly losing scales, which generates a wound. So the wound has to be healed in the epidermis first and then a new scale has to be built. Fish skin cells (keratinocytes) migrate five times faster at room temperature than mammalian cells do at 37 degrees C. So it is very easy to track and follow their migratory paths in a short period of time. "
The study brought fresh insights on the role of calcium signaling in inducing cellular organization and directed migration of skin cells. "When we started this study, we were looking at calcium signaling at the single-cell level, which is how it has been looked at for decades. How do single cells see injury?" Messerli says.
To their surprise, by the end of the study they were looking at the calcium signals not just in single cells but in sheets of cells that surround wounds. "The periphery of the wound itself appears to form a graded calcium signal that could direct migration and growth toward the center of the wound. This is what we are looking at now," Messerli says.
The team's approach was to use advanced microscopy to monitor cellular calcium signals and molecular analysis to identify membrane proteins that caused increases in cellular calcium migration. A variety of mechanically activated ion channels were identified in migratory skin cells. TRPV1, the ion channel that is also activated by hot peppers, was found to be necessary for migration.
INFORMATION:
Messerli's co-authors on the paper include David Graham, formerly a research assistant at MBL and now a graduate student at University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Medicine, and colleagues at Purdue University. Messerli also holds an appointment in the MBL's Cellular Dynamics Program.
Citation:
Graham DM, Huang L, Robinson KR, and Messerli MA (2013) Epidermal keratinocyte polarity and motility require Ca2+ influx through TRPV1. J Cell Sci. 126: 4602-4613.
The Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) is dedicated to scientific discovery and improving the human condition through research and education in biology, biomedicine, and environmental science. Founded in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, in 1888, the MBL is a private, nonprofit institution and an affiliate of the University of Chicago.
Mechanisms of wound healing are clarified in MBL zebrafish study
2013-10-30
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Results of the SAFE-PCI trial presented at TCT 2013
2013-10-30
Results of the SAFE-PCI trial presented at TCT 2013
Novel study finds using radial versus femoral access during cardiac catheterization may have benefits in women
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – October 29, 2013 – A clinical trial conducted exclusively in women suggests that an initial ...
Dinner rituals that correlate with child and adult BMI
2013-10-30
Dinner rituals that correlate with child and adult BMI
All in the family: Dinner tables linked to less fat
Beyond plate size and calorie count, the war against obesity may have a new leader – the dinner table. Families that eat together without the television ...
Knowledge about incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse lower among women of color
2013-10-30
Knowledge about incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse lower among women of color
Knowing what symptoms to look for may help women with pelvic floor disorders improve their chances of successful treatment. But knowledge of these disorders is lacking among most women, ...
Results of the COREVALVE EXTREME RISK trial presented at TCT 2013
2013-10-30
Results of the COREVALVE EXTREME RISK trial presented at TCT 2013
Clinical trial finds that COREVALVE reduces rate of death and stroke in sickest patients with aortic stenosis
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – October 29, 2013 – In a clinical trial, a self-expanding transcatheter aortic ...
Exercise programs could help to prevent fall injuries in older people
2013-10-30
Exercise programs could help to prevent fall injuries in older people
Could reduce rate of severe falls leading to medical care
Exercise programmes designed to prevent falls in older adults also appear to prevent injuries caused by falls, suggests a paper ...
Unpublished trial data 'violates an ethical obligation' to study participants, say researchers
2013-10-30
Unpublished trial data 'violates an ethical obligation' to study participants, say researchers
Study finds almost 1 in 3 large clinical trials still not published 5 years after completion
Almost one in three (29%) large clinical trials remain unpublished ...
Autism and language impairment genetically linked
2013-10-30
Autism and language impairment genetically linked
Rutgers University scientists also find strong evidence of a genetic connection in areas of social skills and repetitive behaviors
Lorenzo Miodus-Santini an 11-year-old sixth-grader from Princeton, who was classified ...
Warm winters let trees sleep longer
2013-10-30
Warm winters let trees sleep longer
Climate change alters timing of spring growth in forests
In the temperate zones, vegetation follows the change of the seasons. After a winter pause, plants put out new growth in spring. Research has now brought ...
New substance effectively combats multi-resistant bacteria
2013-10-30
New substance effectively combats multi-resistant bacteria
MULTI-RESISTANCE: In Europe alone, more than 25,000 people die each year from infections caused by multi-resistant bacteria. Researchers from University of Copenhagen have now developed and characterized ...
Moral in the morning, but dishonest in the afternoon
2013-10-30
Moral in the morning, but dishonest in the afternoon
Our ability to exhibit self-control to avoid cheating or lying is significantly reduced over the course of a day, making us more likely to be dishonest in the afternoon than in the ...