Artificial Skin

Researchers: Prof. Han Chunmao and his team

Affiliated Institution: The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine

Full-thickness skin defect resulting from injury, burns or refractory ulcers often occurs in clinical practice, posing a significant challenge in wound treatment and function recovery. Dermal substitute, serving as a dermal regeneration template (DRT), provides a promising alternative to treat serious skin defects. Dermal substitute products available on the market are mostly manufactured in the United States, which are expensive and require a long treatment cycle.

Professor Han’s team developed a poly(L-lactide-co-glycolide) knitted mesh-reinforced collagen-chitosan scaffold(PLGAm/CCS) dermal substitute, which consists of three layers: a protective layer, a light yellow sponge layer, and a reinforced mesh layer. PLGAm/CCS can inhibit wound contraction, and effectively promote neotissue formation and blood vessel ingrowth after transplantation- shortening the time for tissue regeneration and vascularization to 10 days. Meanwhile, it reduces the cost of treatment remarkably. Therefore, it brings a disruption in China for the treatment of refractory wounds such as deep burn wounds, tendon and bone exposure. Professor Han and his team own independent intellectual property rights for PLGAm/CCS.