title: Study of proliferation and 3D epidermal reconstruction from foreskin, auricular and trunk keratinocytes in children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Severe burns in children are conventionally treated with split-thickness skin autografts or epidermal sheets. An alternative approach is to graft isolated keratinocytes. We evaluated foreskin and other anatomic sites as donor sources for autologous keratinocyte graft in children. We studied in vitro capacities of isolated keratinocytes to divide and reconstitute epidermal tissue.
  
  
  METHODS
  Keratinocytes were isolated from foreskin, auricular skin, chest and abdominal skin by enzymatic digestion. Living cell recovery, in vitro proliferation, epidermal reconstruction capacities and differentiation status were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In vitro studies revealed the higher yield of living keratinocyte recovery from foreskin and higher potential in terms of proliferative capacity, regeneration and differentiation. Cultured keratinocytes from foreskin express lower amounts of differentiation markers than those isolated from trunk and ear. Histological analysis of reconstituted human epidermis derived from foreskin and inguinal keratinocytes showed a structured multilayered epithelium, whereas those obtained from ear pinna-derived keratinocytes were unstructured.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our studies highlight the potential of foreskin tissue for autograft applications in boys. A suitable alternative donor site for autologous cell transplantation in female paediatric burn patients remains an open question in our department. We tested the hypothesis that in vitro studies and RHE reconstructive capacities of cells from different body sites can be helpful to select an optimal site for keratinocyte isolation before considering graft protocols for girls.
authors.affiliation: Service de Chirurgie Pédiatrique, CHU de Poitiers, Poitiers, France; Laboratoire Inflammation, Tissus Epithéliaux et Cytokines (LITEC), Université de Poitiers, Poitiers, France. Electronic address: j.mcheik@chu-poitiers.fr.
authors.forename: Jiad N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Mcheik
authors.affiliation: BIOalternatives, Gençay, France.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Barrault
authors.affiliation: BIOalternatives, Gençay, France.
authors.forename: Nathalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Pedretti
authors.affiliation: BIOalternatives, Gençay, France.
authors.forename: Julien
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Garnier
authors.affiliation: BIOalternatives, Gençay, France.
authors.forename: Franck
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Juchaux
authors.affiliation: Service de Chirurgie Pédiatrique, CHU de Poitiers, Poitiers, France.
authors.forename: Guillaume
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Levard
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Inflammation, Tissus Epithéliaux et Cytokines (LITEC), Université de Poitiers, Poitiers, France.
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Morel
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Inflammation, Tissus Epithéliaux et Cytokines (LITEC), Université de Poitiers, Poitiers, France; BIOalternatives, Gençay, France.
authors.forename: François-Xavier
authors.initials: FX
authors.lastname: Bernard
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire Inflammation, Tissus Epithéliaux et Cytokines (LITEC), Université de Poitiers, Poitiers, France; Laboratoire d'Immunologie et Inflammation, CHU de Poitiers, Poitiers, France.
authors.forename: Jean-Claude
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Lecron
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002056:Burns / Q000601:surgery*; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D054644:Ear Auricle / Q000166:cytology*; D000078404:Epidermal Cells; D005260:Female; D052816:Foreskin / Q000166:cytology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D015603:Keratinocytes / Q000637:transplantation*; D008297:Male; D016038:Skin Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D060726:Torso; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous
keywords: Autografts; Burns; Children; Keratinocytes