The role of growth factor Sadat-Habdan mesenchymal stimulating peptide in healing of burn wounds.

Background: Burns occur in everyday life and cause morbidity and mortality due to delayed healing. Many agents were tried to accelerate healing of burns. The aim of this study was to assess for the first time Sadat-Habdan mesenchymal stimulating peptide (SHMSP) known angiogenesis factor in healing of experimentally created burns in rats.

Methods: Forty male rats weighing (200-250 g) were randomly divided into 2 groups of 20 each. Under general anesthesia, reproducible, deep, partial-thickness, thermal burn injury was created by 1-cm aluminum template on the dorsal aspect of the body of each animal by heating the template at 80 °C for 10 seconds. Alternate rats were assigned to 1 of the 2 groups to minimize the difference of timing of the burn. Sadat-Habdan mesenchymal stimulating peptide 10 mg was applied on daily burn area, covered with a nonabsorbent dressing. All animals were kept in similar standard laboratory conditions. Its application continued 14 days as described by the inventors, and burned areas were photographed. On day 15, blood was collected from the animals for serum albumin levels, and the animals were killed, then the entire burn areas were excised for biopsy for general morphology and histopathology.

Results: There were no deaths among groups. The majority of the animals showed good to excellent healing compared with the control group. Clinical pictures revealed better healing in the SHMSP-treated group. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of images revealed significant contraction of burned areas. Image analysis showed that improved healing in the form of exaggerated fibroplasia in 19 of 20 in the study group and 11 of 20 in the control group. Regeneration of the panniculous muscle layer was observed in 19 of 20 of the study group and 5 of 20 of the control group. The mean vessel index in the study group was 53.18 ± 4.74 mm(2) and in the control group 23.7 ± 6.37 mm(2) (P < 0.001; confidence interval, 25.88-33.04), whereas the mean of vessel area density was 24.76 ± 7.35 versus 8.68 ± 4.04 mm(2) (P < 0.001; confidence interval, 12.28-19.88) in the control group. Histopathologic analysis by hematoxylin-eosin stain, CD31, and factor VIII stains showed significant angiogenesis in the quantity and quality of the new blood vessels in the study group compared with the control group.

Conclusions: Sadat-Habdan mesenchymal stimulating peptide has potential of early healing of experimentally produced burns in rats. Healing was effective and better in the study group compared with the control group, in qualitative and quantitative measures.