Mesenchymal stem cells modified with angiopoietin-1 gene promote wound healing

Introduction: Treatment of chronic skin wounds is difficult and largely ineffective. Little improvement has been shown in promoting the healing of these wounds in the past few decades. Innovative treatments to enhance chronic wound healing process are therefore needed. Methods: In this study, we examined the efficacy of angiopoietin-1 gene-modified bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (Ang1-MSCs) on the promotion of cutaneous wound healing in rats. Excisional full-thickness wounds were treated with Ang1-MSCs, a recombinant adenovirus encoding angiopoietin-1 (Ad-Ang1), unmodified bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), or vehicle medium (sham). Results: The results showed that Ang1-MSCs significantly promoted wound healing with increased epidermal and dermal regeneration, and enhanced angiogenesis compared with MSCs, Ad-Ang1 or sham treatment. Moreover, Ang1-MSCs expressed CD31 in the wound, suggesting a direct contribution of Ang1-MSCs to angiogenesis. Conclusions: Here we show that Ang1-MSCs accelerate wound healing by promoting skin regeneration and angiogenesis, compared with MSCs or Ad-Ang1 alone.