Experimental models and methods for cutaneous wound healing assessment

Abstract

Wound healing studies are intricate, mainly because of the multifaceted nature of the wound environment and the complexity of the healing process, which integrates a variety of cells and repair phases, including inflammation, proliferation, reepithelialization and remodelling. There are a variety of possible preclinical models, such as in mice, rabbits and pigs, which can be used to mimic acute or impaired for example, diabetic and nutrition-related wounds. These can be induced by many different techniques, with excision or incision being the most common. After determining a suitable model for a study, investigators need to select appropriate and reproducible methods that will allow the monitoring of the wound progression over time. The assessment can be performed by non-invasive protocols such as wound tracing, photographic documentation (including image analysis), biophysical techniques and/or by invasive protocols that will require wound biopsies. In this article, we provide an overview of some of the most often needed and used: (a) preclinical/animal models including incisional, excisional, burn and impaired wounds; (b) methods to evaluate the healing progression such as wound healing rate, wound analysis by image, biophysical assessment, histopathological, immunological and biochemical assays. The aim is to help researchers during the design and execution of their wound healing studies.

Keywords: cutaneous wound models; experimental animal models; in vivo models; skin ulcer; tissue repair; wound healing.

Figure 1

Common models used in wound healing studies

Figure 2

Representative images of different experimental wound healing models (excisional wounds on the dorsal surface in rats and rabbits ear), showing the use of different punch diameters and also a representation of follow‐up immediately after surgery (Day 0), during the inflammatory phase (Day 2) and reepithelialization (Day 14)

Figure 3

Common methods used to investigate wound healing