Promising Directions of Repurposing 4-AP to Promote Hair Follicle Regeneration and Collagen Remodeling Following Severe Burn

Grade:

12

Teacher:

Angelique Krencius

The healing process for severe thermal skin burns is often impeded by inflammation in the wound site and apoptosis, or programmed cell death. Given the frequency of thermal skin burns, with almost half a million patients suffering from burn injuries in the US annually, an effective treatment to accelerate healing and mitigate impediments is clear. 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) is a US FDA approved drug for multiple sclerosis (MS). This research aims to repurpose 4-AP to treat severe, or full-thickness skin burns in mice. It was found that systemic injection of the treatment over a 28-day healing period promoted faster burn healing and displayed significant hair follicle regeneration and collagen remodeling, both of which contribute to dermal remodeling. Furthermore, 4-AP evidently allowed for higher mature collagen levels in the later stage of the wound healing. Overall, 4-AP displays promising directions novel and clinically relevant in thermal burn treatment.

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Research paper