Abstract
Healing of superficial skin wounds depends on the proliferation and migration of keratinocytes at the wound margin. When human epidermal keratinocytes were incubated on polymerized type I collagen, they rapidly attached and spread. The cells underwent a proliferative response and, over the subsequent 6-day period, covered the collagen surface with a monolayer of cells. When keratinocytes were plated on collagen that had been fragmented by exposure to matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1, collagenase-1), the cells attached as readily as to intact collagen but spread more slowly and less completely. Growth was reduced by approximately 50%. Instead of covering the collagen surface, the keratinocytes remained localized to the site of attachment. Keratinocytes on fragmented collagen expressed a more differentiated phenotype as indicated by a higher level of surface E-cadherin. Based on these findings, we suggest that damage to the underlying collagenous matrix may impede efficient keratinocyte function and retard wound closure.