title: Wound repair and regeneration.
abstract: The repair of wounds is one of the most complex biological processes that occur during human life. After an injury, multiple biological pathways immediately become activated and are synchronized to respond. In human adults, the wound repair process commonly leads to a non-functioning mass of fibrotic tissue known as a scar. By contrast, early in gestation, injured fetal tissues can be completely recreated, without fibrosis, in a process resembling regeneration. Some organisms, however, retain the ability to regenerate tissue throughout adult life. Knowledge gained from studying such organisms might help to unlock latent regenerative pathways in humans, which would change medical practice as much as the introduction of antibiotics did in the twentieth century.
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Surgery, Institute of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, 257 Campus Drive, Stanford, California 94305-5148, USA. ggurtner@stanford.edu
authors.forename: Geoffrey C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Gurtner
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Werner
authors.forename: Yann
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Barrandon
authors.forename: Michael T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Longaker
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005355:Fibrosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D012038:Regeneration / Q000502:physiology*; D044968:Regenerative Medicine / Q000639:trends; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins