Antimicrobial peptide Epinecidin-1 promotes complete skin regeneration of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus-infected burn wounds in a swine model.
This report shows that the antimicrobial peptide (AMP) Epinecidin-1 (Epi-1) efficiently heals MRSA-infected heat burn injuries and provides protection from infection in a pig model. The presence of an optimal level of Epi-1 induces cell proliferation by promoting cell cycle progression through an increase in S-phase cells. Epi-1 also induces proliferation to cover the wounded region in an in vitro cell proliferation assay using immortalized human epithelial HaCaT cells. Next, the in vivo wound healing efficiency of Epi-1 was tested in heat-burned pig skin infected with MRSA under in vivo conditions. Treatment of the injury with Epi-1 for 1 h at six hours post-infection completely healed the wound within 25 days. Conversely, the injury in the untreated control was not healed 25 days post-infection. Histological staining of wound sections with H&E showed that Epi-1 enhanced vascularization and increased epithelial activities in the wound region. Neutrophil recruitment to the wounded region in the Epi-1-treated sections was visualized by Giemsa staining. Additionally, Masson's trichrome staining of wound sections confirmed that Epi-1 enhanced extracellular collagen compound formation. The induction of sepsis-associated blood C-reactive protein (CRP) and the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 in response to MRSA infection was also suppressed in pigs that received Epi-1. Taken together, the results demonstrate that the biomaterial Epi-1 heals wounds through increasing epithelial cell proliferation, vascularization, and the formation of collagen and controls MRSA infection-mediated sepsis in pigs.
Marine Research Station, Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology, Academia Sinica, Jiaushi, Ilan, Taiwan.
Han-Ning
HN
Huang
Department and Graduate Institute of Aquaculture, National Kaohsiung Marine University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
Chieh-Yu
CY
Pan
Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Neipu, Taiwan.
Hung-Yi
HY
Wu
Marine Research Station, Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology, Academia Sinica, Jiaushi, Ilan, Taiwan.
Jyh-Yih
JY
Chen
D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002056:Burns / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000382:microbiology; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D029941:Fish Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D015603:Keratinocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D012867:Skin / Q000166:cytology* / Q000293:injuries / Q000382:microbiology; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000382:microbiology; D013552:Swine; D014946:Wound Infection / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000382:microbiology
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides; D029941:Fish Proteins; C521392:epinecidin-1, Epinephelus coioides
Epinecidin-1; antimicrobial peptide; methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus