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Collageena and Health Professionals
Robert F. Diegelmann, PhD, From the Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia
Abstract and Introduction
The process of wound healing consists of an orderly sequence of
events characterized by the specific infiltration of specialized
cells into the wound site. The platelets and inflammatory cells
are the first cells to arrive, and they provide key functions
and signals needed for the influx of connective tissue cells and
a new blood supply. These chemical signals are known as growth
factors or cytokines. The fibroblast is the connective tissue
cell responsible for collagen deposition needed to repair the
tissue injury. Collagen is the most abundant protein in the animal
kingdom, as it accounts for 30 percent of the total protein in
the human body. In normal tissues, collagen provides strength,
integrity, and structure. When tissues are disrupted following
injury, collagen is needed to repair the defect and hopefully
restore structure and thus function. If too much collagen is deposited
in the wound site, normal anatomical structure is lost, function
is compromised, and the problem of fibrosis results. Conversely,
if insufficient amounts of collagen are deposited, the wound is
weak and may dehisce. Therefore, to fully understand wound healing,
it is essential to understand the basic biochemistry of collagen
metabolism.
Collagen is found in all of our connective tissues, such as dermis,
bones, tendons, and ligaments, and also provides for the structural
integrity of all of our internal organs.[1,2] Therefore, because
of its wide distribution throughout our bodies, it represents
one of the most abundant naturally occurring proteins on earth.[3]
In addition to its natural abundance, there are well over 1,000
commercial products on the market today that contain collagen
and collagen enhancers. These products are represented by body
and hand lotions, nail treatments, firming gels, wrinkle injections,
eye pads, and even anti-cancer treatments to name but a few. In
recent years, new high-tech wound dressing materials and skin
substitutes have become available for the treatment of partial-thickness
injuries as well as full-thickness and chronic dermal ulcers.
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