Morphological changes of human skin cells exposed to a DC electric field in vitro using a new exposure system

The human skin contains a physiological battery that could be implicated in the healing process, by creating an endogenous electric field. Skin cells undergo morphological changes in response to an external DC electric field (EF). We found that fibroblasts reorient their cell bodies in a manner perp endicular to the EF direction, for normal and above physiological intensiti es. Actin and tubulin filaments (cytoskeleton proteins) follow the same pat tern of reorientation. Keratinocytes tend to elongate In the same direction , although to a lesser extent. The study of the response of human skin cell s to an external EF is a first step toward a better understanding of the me chanisms involved in wound healing and eventually toward the improvement of wound repair.