| First Author | Jiang D | Year | 2020 |
| Journal | Nat Commun | Volume | 11 |
| Issue | 1 | Pages | 5653 |
| PubMed ID | 33159076 | Mgi Jnum | J:299777 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:6490656 | Doi | 10.1038/s41467-020-19425-1 |
| Citation | Jiang D, et al. (2020) Injury triggers fascia fibroblast collective cell migration to drive scar formation through N-cadherin. Nat Commun 11(1):5653 |
| abstractText | Scars are more severe when the subcutaneous fascia beneath the dermis is injured upon surgical or traumatic wounding. Here, we present a detailed analysis of fascia cell mobilisation by using deep tissue intravital live imaging of acute surgical wounds, fibroblast lineage-specific transgenic mice, and skin-fascia explants (scar-like tissue in a dish - SCAD). We observe that injury triggers a swarming-like collective cell migration of fascia fibroblasts that progressively contracts the skin and form scars. Swarming is exclusive to fascia fibroblasts, and requires the upregulation of N-cadherin. Both swarming and N-cadherin expression are absent from fibroblasts in the upper skin layers and the oral mucosa, tissues that repair wounds with minimal scar. Impeding N-cadherin binding inhibits swarming and skin contraction, and leads to reduced scarring in SCADs and in animals. Fibroblast swarming and N-cadherin thus provide therapeutic avenues to curtail fascia mobilisation and pathological fibrotic responses across a range of medical settings. |
