Chitosan and gelatin as engineered dressing for wound repair

A therapeutic support for the less effective steps in skin's recovery shoul d improve reparative capacity. A morphological and immunohistochemical eval uation of tissue repair in rats in the presence of chitosan glycolate gel a nd cross-linked gelatin wound dressings was conducted and compared. In chit osan-treated animals, the repaired dermis preserved high cellularity with m esenchymal features associated with a rich vascular network. These aspects were less marked in the presence of Phytostimuline gauze or gelatin. The hy drophilic properties of chitosan are clearly demonstrated by the high level of hydration observed in the neoformed tissue. The chitosan gel was able t o modulate the early steps of wound healing. Cross-linked gelatin represent s an active dressing for the more dystrophic wounded tissues often associat ed with aging and systemic disease.