Umbilical Cord Secretome Hydrogel Enhances Early Wound Healing in Rats with Full-Thickness Cutaneous Wounds

Background: Umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell (UCMSC) secretome is rich in growth factors, making it a potential agent for aiding wound healing. This study aimed to ascertain the efficacy of a UCMSC secretome hydrogel preparation in the healing process of cutaneous wounds in Wistar rats by measuring healed wound area, epithelial thickness, neovascularization, epidermal growth factor expression, and collagen deposition.Methods: Full-thickness cutaneous wounds were made on the backs of 40 rats. The rats were then randomly assigned to two cohorts (cohort 1 measured on day 3 and cohort 2 on day 7) and four wound dressing groups: framycetin sulfate 1% gauze dressing, hydrogel dressing, UCMSC secretome dressing, and UCMSC secretome hydrogel dressing (all n=10, 5 for each cohort) groups. Dressings on cohort 2 were reapplied on day 3 after the initial dressings were applied.Results: Parameter measurements revealed better wound healing in the secretome hydrogel dressing group (F=62.42, P<0.001), specifically an 89.3% (P<0.001) increase on day 3 and a 68.3% (P<0.001) increase on day 7 when compared to gauze dressings. This group also presented higher rates of neovascularization (F=36.72, P<0.001) compared to other groups.Conclusion: Our findings reiterate the potential of UCMSC secretome to enhance early cutaneous wound healing. While initial histologic assessments suggest potential pro-angiogenic effects, further validation with endothelial-specific markers is required to definitively confirm functional neovascularization.