In the spirit of the pioneering work of its namesake, the speaker of the Thomas K. Hunt Endowed Lecture is chosen by the Wound Healing Society Foundation for his/her major contributions to scientific inquiry that are likely to advance the field of wound healing. This one-hour lecture will provide an overview of the inspiration for their work, discussion of how the research will impact the field of wound healing and conclude with a vision for the future of research.
The effects of aging on tissue repair and regeneration are well recognized and significant similarities between chronological and metabolic (epigenetic) aging are beginning to emerge. This session will review current concepts researchers believe can explain the changing capacity of cells to respond to their local surroundings, the differences between aging and senescence and the role of the environment in aging.
There are numerous emerging approaches on the horizon that offer the promise to harness the natural biology of wound healing and promote repair. One example stems from the development of novel optical imaging methods that enable an investigation of cell signaling and the progression of repair using the software developed for multidimensional image analysis and enabling a re-interpretation of molecular changes in the wound bed. Yet another originates in the discovery of bacterial communication, signaling trafficking and perception – both between bacteria and between bacteria and eukaryotes. These emerging technologies will be introduced in this session and their possible applications to wound healing discussed in light of the effects on growth factors, matrix remodeling and infection on the wound bed. A panel of wound repair scientists will discuss the impact of these technologies on wound repair.
Wound healing is a tremendous challenge for systems biologists because on one hand, the injury is local but on the other, the response is systemic. In addition to the trafficking of inflammatory (and anti inflammatory cells) in the wound bed, the central and peripheral nervous systems (CNS and PNS) can participate in the repair and regenerative response. This session will review the mechanisms of CNS involvement in injury, current concepts governing the efferent and afferent pathways affected by wounding and the role played by neuro-inflammation.
With the advent of progress in systems biology and the emergence of “big data”, mathematical methods and computational sciences have the capacity to transform our understanding of wound healing. While still in its infancy, these methods offer the opportunity for in silico research, predictive analyses and drug testing.
The advent of techniques like 3-D printing now introduces the possibility of envisioning a treatment of the personalized wound. When combined with nanoparticles, spatiotemporal drug and biotherapeutics, delivery could address many of the limitations to wound therapeutics. This session will review the needs of the wound healing and injury repair to introduce new ways that next generation matrices might be designed to better promote repair.
The Australasian Wound & Tissue Repair Society is dedicated to improving wound healing and tissue repair through education, research, and practice. The society will moderate a session of oral presentations by its membership and present their approaches to different aspects of wound healing and tissue repair research basic science to clinical aspects of injury repair.
Oral abstract presentations will feature the highest scoring abstracts submitted to the WHS.
Oral abstract presentations will feature the highest scoring abstracts submitted to the WHS.
Patients with diseased or injured organs may be treated with transplanted tissues. There is a severe shortage of donor organs and tissues which is worsening yearly due to the aging population. Regenerative medicine and tissue engineering apply the principles of cell transplantation, material sciences, and bioengineering to construct biological substitutes that may restore and maintain normal function in diseased and injured tissues. Stem cells may offer a potentially limitless source of cells for tissue engineering applications and are opening new options for therapy. Recent advances that have occurred in regenerative medicine will be reviewed. Applications of these new technologies that may offer novel therapies for patients with tissue injury and organ failure will be described.
Learning Objectives
1. Describe the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine
2. Explain some of the current research applications in regenerative medicine
3. Explain some of the current clinical applications in regenerative medicine
*This is an accredited session.In the first of two sessions, four WHS young investigators involved in cutting edge research are given their own specially designed session to highlight some of the best and brightest new voices in wound healing research and to encourage their teaching and research careers.
Supported, in part, through a restricted educational grant from Abbott Nutrition, a division of Abbott Laboratories, Inc.
After a short presentation and panel discussion, participants break into round tables to discuss issues at the forefront of wound healing research and training: how to find a mentor, how to establish collaborations, how to interact with industry, academics and funding agencies and, how to develop a career in wound healing research.
The advent of personalized medicine opens the possibility of developing individualized treatments for different injuries. Yet investigators often overlook the fact that different “skins” in different areas can repair differently with scarring: with and without scarring, for example. This session will review the regional differences in skin biology, the changing micro-biome in different areas of skin and the impact the local environment can have on the natural processes of repair.
New literature indicates that off-loading of diabetic foot ulcers improves healing rates, but there are different methods to this treatment. This session will explain the role of total contact casting as an evidence-based yet under-utilized standard for off-loading. The speakers will also review challenging cases of diabetic or charcot wounds, presenting practical approaches to wound management with total contact casting.
Supported by an educational grant from Derma Sciences, Inc.
Oral abstract presentations will feature the highest scoring abstracts submitted to the WHS.
The landscape for wound care treatments is constantly adapting to new technology and therapy. Various wound care products are currently commercially available, with extensive data and evidence supporting their use. This session will differentiate cellular versus acellular therapies, as well as cellular versus acellular placental tissues in the treatment of chronic wounds. The speakers will also review case-based scenarios utilizing cellular therapies as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of chronic wounds.
Supported by an education grant from Osiris Therapeutics, Inc