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Review
. 2021 Oct 13;22(20):11030.
doi: 10.3390/ijms222011030.

A Beginner's Introduction to Skin Stem Cells and Wound Healing

Daniel Díaz-García  1   2 , Alžbeta Filipová  3 , Idalia Garza-Veloz  4 , Margarita L Martinez-Fierro  4
Affiliations
Review

A Beginner's Introduction to Skin Stem Cells and Wound Healing

Daniel Díaz-García et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

The primary function of the skin is that of a physical barrier against the environment and diverse pathogens; therefore, its integrity is essential for survival. Skin regeneration depends on multiple stem cell compartments within the epidermis, which, despite their different transcriptional and proliferative capacity, as well as different anatomical location, fall under the general term of skin stem cells (SSCs). Skin wounds can normally heal without problem; however, some diseases or extensive damage may delay or prevent healing. Non-healing wounds represent a serious and life-threatening scenario that may require advanced therapeutic strategies. In this regard, increased focus has been directed at SSCs and their role in wound healing, although emerging therapeutical approaches are considering the use of other stem cells instead, such as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Given its extensive and broad nature, this review supplies newcomers with an introduction to SSCs, wound healing, and therapeutic strategies for skin regeneration, thus familiarizing the reader with the subject in preparation for future in depth reading.

Keywords: non-healing wounds; skin regeneration; skin stem cells; tissue engineering; wound healing.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
General structure of the skin. The skin is composed of two primary layers: the epidermis and the dermis. The epidermis, hair follicles, and the dermis are the primary skin stem cells reservoirs. Among the different populations of stem cells are hair follicle stem cells, interfollicular epidermis stem cells, sebaceous gland stem cells, melanocyte stem cells, and dermal stem cells. * The dermis represents a larger adult stem cell reservoir than the hair follicle and epidermis put together. Three representative stem cell subpopulations from the dermis (dermal stem cells) including neural crest stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells-like dermal stem cells, and dermal hematopoietic cells are represented in the figure. Some elements of this figure were taken from the Mind the Graph platform, available at www.mindthegraph.com (accessed on 27 September 2021).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Wound healing process. Wound healing and skin regeneration. Wound healing is a highly conserved mechanism that includes processes such as: (1) bleeding and hemostasis, in which blood flow slows and a clot forms to prevent blood loss during an injury. (2) Inflammation and blood clotting, in which the wound becomes sealed by fibrin which forms a temporary matrix occupied by immune cells whose task is to remove dead tissue and control infection, fibroblasts are then recruited into the site of the injury and promote angiogenesis and the recruitment of fibroblast-derived myofibroblasts, which contract the wound area. Skin stem cells are mobilized into the site of injury at this stage to begin the process of re-epithelialization starting from the edge of the wound. (3) Cellular proliferation, in which the recruited fibroblasts secrete collagen, and form granulation tissue, a scab is formed on the site of injury. (4) Extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling, in which new ECM components are secreted by both fibroblasts and epidermal keratinocytes, which remodel the matrix through the expression of matrix metalloproteinases. Some elements of this figure were taken from the Mind the Graph platform, available at www.mindthegraph.com (accessed on 27 September 2021).
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