Fabrication of biocompatible artificial skin for full-thickness wound by co-culture of adipose mesenchymal stem cells-human keratinocytes on oxygen-producing nanofiber electrospun scaffold in rat animal model

In wound healing and skin regeneration, hypoxia is a significant limitation that delays this process. Lack of oxygen can lead to cell death and postpone tissue regeneration. Hence, eliminating the absence of oxygen by generating oxygen from an oxygen-generating scaffold can accelerate the skin's healing process. In our previous study, after making a scaffold with three components of polyurethane-polycaprolactone-gelatin-sodium bicarbonate, the scaffold was characterized, and the amount of oxygen release was measured, and in the next step, keratinocyte and mesenchymal cells, respectively, with a ratio of 70 to 30 were cultured. The morphology of the cells on the scaffold, the number of cells on the scaffold, and the bioavailability of the scaffold were further studied. Then, after ensuring the increase in the expression of skin-specific genes, it was transplanted into rats in the present study, and then, as a biocompatible skin substitute, its effect on the wound healing process for full-thickness skin defects was investigated in the rat model. At the end of 3,7,10, and 14 days after surgery, the macroscopic and histopathological characteristics were evaluated at the end of 14 days after surgery. Results show that our designed scaffold groups accelerate the wound healing process compared to the control group. Scaffold 2/5% SPC+ co-culture groups demonstrated more wound repair efficacy. Animal results show that the effective release of oxygen from the scaffold leads to the acceleration of wound healing, the increase of angiogenesis, and the formation of granulation tissue in the early stages of the healing process, which can increase its therapeutic potential. It is proposed for regenerative medicine and skin tissue engineering platforms. Therefore, our study supports using oxygen-releasing scaffolds as a potential strategy to accelerate skin regeneration.