Nerve regeneration and wound healing are stimulated and directed by an endogenous electrical field in vivo

Abstract

Biological roles for naturally occurring, extracellular physiological electric fields have been proposed over the past century. However, in the molecular era, many biologists presume that electric fields have little physiological relevance because there has been no unequivocal demonstration of their importance at the single-cell level in vivo. We have used an in vivo rat corneal model, which generates its own endogenous electric field and show that nerve sprouting, the direction of nerve growth and the rate of epithelial wound healing are controlled coordinately by the wound-induced electric field.

Actomyosin purse strings: Renewable resources that make morphogenesis robust and resilient

“…The authors conclude that the EGFR is not activated in intact epithelial tissue but sees ligand upon the formation of a free edge. Other changes triggered by the formation of a free edge have been suggested to initiate the wound healing response (see, for example, Song et al, 2004).…”

The Electrical Response to Injury: Molecular Mechanisms and Wound Healing

“…Neurons also grow in response to skin wounds, 61 and nerve growth toward cornea wounds is stimulated and directed by the endogenous wound electric signal. 62 These results led to the hypothesis that applied EFs may help heal chronic nonhealing wounds where other treatments have failed.…”

“…78,79 Pharmacological stumulation of ion pumping to enhance the transcorneal potential and the wound EF and to enhance wound healing appears to be a promising strategy in the cornea. 11,13,16,62 See also the Diabetic disease model section.…”

Electrokinetics of Temperature for Development and Treatment of Effusions

“…IC does not make temperature increase in the wound because its low power (approx. 0.01 mW/g) does not increase the local heat-production [59].…”