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Xenogeneic skin transplantation promotes angiogenesis and tissue regeneration through activated Trem2+ macrophages
Henn D, Chen K, Fehlmann T, Trotsyuk AA, Sivaraj D, Maan ZN, Bonham CA, Barrera JA et al.. Science advances, 2021-12-01
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Skin allo- and xenotransplantation are the standard treatment for major burns when donor sites for autografts are not available. The relationship between the immune response to foreign grafts and their impact on wound healing has not been fully elucidated. Here, we investigated changes in collagen architecture after xenogeneic implantation of human biologic scaffolds.
Key findings
- The relationship between the immune response to foreign grafts and their impact on wound healing has not been fully elucidated.
- Here, we investigated changes in collagen architecture after xenogeneic implantation of human biologic scaffolds.
- We show that collagen deposition in response to the implantation of human split-thickness skin grafts (hSTSGs) containing live cells recapitulates normal skin architecture, whereas human acellular dermal matrix (ADM) grafts led to a fibrotic collagen deposition.
- We show that macrophage differentiation in response to hSTSG implantation is driven toward regenerative Trem2 + subpopulations and found that hydrogel delivery of these cells significantly accelerated wound closure.
Why it matters
This study examined collagen deposition and activated Trem2-positive macrophages after xenogeneic skin transplantation. It concerns skin grafting and wound healing, not Alzheimer's disease, and provides no information on treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 48/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Science advances) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Science Advances: journal h-index 378 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 3 / 5 | 2021 — within 6 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 4 / 7 | Cited 55 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 7.9 citations a year over 7 year(s) since 2021 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 4.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 1 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 33 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Geoffrey C. Gurtner: h-index 96 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | Stanford University: institution h-index 2,684 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 4 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 34851663) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 48 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Henn, D., Chen, K., Fehlmann, T., Trotsyuk, A. A., Sivaraj, D., Maan, Z. N., et al. (2021). Xenogeneic skin transplantation promotes angiogenesis and tissue regeneration through activated Trem2+ macrophages. Science advances. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abi4528
Vancouver
Henn D, Chen K, Fehlmann T, Trotsyuk AA, Sivaraj D, Maan ZN, et al. Xenogeneic skin transplantation promotes angiogenesis and tissue regeneration through activated Trem2+ macrophages. Science advances. 2021. doi:10.1126/sciadv.abi4528. PMID: 34851663.
BibTeX
@article{henn2021-34851663,
author = {Henn, D. and Chen, K. and Fehlmann, T. and Trotsyuk, A. A. and Sivaraj, D. and Maan, Z. N. and Bonham, C. A. and Barrera, J. A. and others},
title = {{Xenogeneic skin transplantation promotes angiogenesis and tissue regeneration through activated Trem2+ macrophages}},
journal = {Science advances},
year = {2021},
doi = {10.1126/sciadv.abi4528},
pmid = {34851663},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abi4528}
}
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