Title:Identifying New Pathways and Targets for Wound Healing and Therapeutics from Natural Sources
Volume: 18
Issue: 8
Author(s): Xinchi Feng and Jinsong Hao*
Affiliation:
- Department of Pharmaceutical Science and Research, School of Pharmacy, Marshall University, Huntington, WV,United States
Keywords:
Wound healing, pathways, targets, herbal medicines, amphibian skins, electrospinning.
Abstract: Chronic wounds remain a significant public problem and the development of wound
treatments has been a research focus for the past few decades. Despite advances in the products derived
from endogenous substances involved in a wound healing process (e.g., growth factors, stem
cells, and extracellular matrix), effective and safe wound therapeutics are still limited. There is an
unmet need to develop new therapeutics. Various new pathways and targets have been identified
and could become a molecular target in designing novel wound agents. Importantly, many existing
drugs that target these newly identified pathways could be repositioned for wound therapy, which
will facilitate fast translation of research findings to clinical applications. This review discusses the
newly identified pathways/targets and their potential uses in the development of wound therapeutics.
Some herbs and amphibian skins have been traditionally used for wound repairs and their active
ingredients have been found to act in these new pathways. Hence, screening these natural products
for novel wound therapeutics remains a viable approach. The outcomes of wound care using
natural wound therapeutics could be improved if we can better understand their cellular and molecular
mechanisms and fabricate them in appropriate formulations, such as using novel wound dressings
and nano-engineered materials. Therefore, we also provide an update on the advances in
wound therapeutics from natural sources. Overall, this review offers new insights into novel wound
therapeutics.
