Rapid ScarFree Wound Healing in the Ctenophore Mnemiopsis

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Rapid Scar-Free Wound Healing in the Ctenophore
Mnemiopsis
Matthew B. Dodson and Anthony G. Moss
Auburn University,
Cellular Molecular Biosciences Program
Center
for Environmental Cellular Signal Transduction
Mnemiopsis leidyi
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The Mechanism

• Wound repair begins within 5 minutes.
• Millions of cells migrate to damaged site.
• Cells aggregate and pull wound edges together.
• Wound heals in 30 minutes without scar.

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Cell Cultures

• Wound cells can be cultured.
• Form new tissue.
• Mimic natural conditions.
• Easy to manipulate.

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Implications

• Model system to study rapid, scar-free wound
  repair.
• Like fetal wound repair.
• Molecular genetic tools allow comparison to
  humans.
• Biomedical discovery tool.

• Thanks to
• Alabama Commission on Higher Education and the
  ACHE-GRSP program.
• Auburn University Cellular Molecular
  Biosciences Program / Center for
• Environmental Cellular Signal Transduction
  (AU-CMB/CECST).
• Alabama EPSCoR and NSF support under Grant No.
  EPS-0447675 to the CECST
• and MCB-0348327 to Dr. A.G. Moss (AU-CMB/CECST,
  Biological Sciences)