Chemokines IL-8, GROα, MCP-1, IP-10, and Mig Are Sequentially and Differentially Expressed During Phase-Specific Infiltration of Leukocyte Subsets in Human Wound Healing

TLDR: It is suggested that a dynamic set of chemokines contributes to the spatially and temporally different infiltration of leukocyte subsets and thus integrates the inflammatory and reparative processes during wound repair.

Abstract: Healing of cutaneous wounds requires a complex integrated network of repair mechanisms, including the action of newly recruited leukocytes. Using a skin repair model in adult humans, we investigated the role chemokines play in sequential infiltration of leukocyte subsets during wound healing. At day 1 after injury, the C-X-C chemokines IL-8 and growth-related oncogene α are maximally expressed in the superficial wound bed and are spatially and temporally associated with neutrophil infiltration. IL-8 and growth-related oncogene α profiles also correlate with keratinocyte migration and subsequently subside after wound closure at day 4. Macrophage infiltration reaches the highest levels at day 2 and is paralleled by monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 mRNA expression in both the basal layer of the proliferative epidermis at the wound margins and mononuclear cells in the wound area. Other monocyte-attracting chemokines such as monocyte chemoattractant protein-3, macrophage inflammatory protein-1α and -1β, RANTES, and I309 are undetectable. At day 4, perivascular focal lymphocyte accumulation correlates with strong focal expression of the C-X-C chemokines Mig and IP-10. Our results suggest that a dynamic set of chemokines contributes to the spatially and temporally different infiltration of leukocyte subsets and thus integrates the inflammatory and reparative processes during wound repair.