ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Complicated diabetic patients show impaired, delayed wound healing caused by multiple factors. A study on wound healing showed that platelet-rich plasma (PRP) was effective in normal tissue regeneration. Nonetheless, there is no evidence that when plateletrich plasma is applied to diabetic wounds, it normalizes the diabetic wound healing process. In this study, we have analyzed matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, MMP-9 expression to investigate the effect of PRP on diabetic wounds. METHODS: Twenty-four-week-old male Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty rats were provided by the Tokushima Research Institute. At 50 weeks, wounds were arranged in two sites on the lateral paraspinal areas. Each wound was treated with PRP gel and physiologic saline gauze. To determine the expression of MMP-2, MMP-9, which was chosen as a marker of wound healing, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was performed and local distribution and expression of MMP-2, MMP-9 was also observed throughout the immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: RT-PCR and the immunohistochemical study showed that the levels of MMP-2, MMP-9 mRNA expression in PRP applied tissues were higher than MMP-2, MMP-9 mRNA expression in saline-applied tissues. MMP-9 mRNA expression in wounds of diabetic rats decreased after healing began to occur. But no statistical differences were detected on the basis of body weight or fasting blood glucose levels. CONCLUSIONS: This study could indicate the extracellular matrix-regulating effect observed with PRP. Our results of the acceleration of wound healing events by PRP under hyperglycemic conditions might be a useful clue for future clinical treatment for diabetic wounds.