title: Nanofiber applications for burn care.
abstract: Nanotechnology is a growing field of manufactured materials with sizes less than 1 mum, and it is particularly useful in the field of medicine because these applications replicate components of a cell's in vivo environment. Nanofibers, which mimic collagen fibrils in the extracellular matrix (ECM), can be created from a host of natural and synthetic compounds and have multiple properties that may be beneficial to burn wound care. These properties include a large surface-area-to-volume ratio, high porosity, improved cell adherence, proliferation and migration, and controlled in vivo degradation rates. The large surface area of nanofiber mats allows for increased interaction with compounds and provides a mechanism for sustained release of antibiotics, analgesics, or growth factors into burn wounds; high porosity allows diffusion of nutrients and waste. Improved cell function on these scaffolds will promote healing. Controlled degradation rates of these scaffolds will promote scaffold absorption after its function is no longer required. The objective of this article is to review the current literature describing nanofibers and their potential application to burn care.
authors.affiliation: University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hromadka
authors.forename: James B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Collins
authors.forename: Courtney
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Reed
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Kamal K
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Kolappa
authors.forename: Bruce A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Cairns
authors.forename: Tony
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Andrady
authors.forename: John A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: van Aalst
mesh_terms: D000700:Analgesics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000995:Antitubercular Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002056:Burns / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000628:therapy*; D002437:Cefazolin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002448:Cell Adhesion; D002465:Cell Movement; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D003029:Coagulants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003094:Collagen / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016326:Extracellular Matrix Proteins / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005340:Fibrinogen / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000071235:Fibromodulin; D006801:Humans; D050997:Nanomedicine / Q000379:methods*; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010982:Platelet-Derived Growth Factor; D016062:Porosity; D011509:Proteoglycans / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012293:Rifampin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1 / Q000187:drug effects; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D000700:Analgesics; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D000995:Antitubercular Agents; D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D003029:Coagulants; D016326:Extracellular Matrix Proteins; C000604330:FMOD protein, human; D010982:Platelet-Derived Growth Factor; D011509:Proteoglycans; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1; D000071235:Fibromodulin; D005340:Fibrinogen; D003094:Collagen; D002437:Cefazolin; D012293:Rifampin