Leptin, a 16-kDa non-glycosylated polypeptide made by adipose cells, it is called anti-obesity hormone, is a product of the obese (ob) gene. Leptin was approved in the United States in 2014 for use in congenital leptin deficiency and generalised lipodystrophy. However, some past studies unveiled the effect of leptin on would healing by demonstrating that leptin acted as an autocrine/paracrine regulator in the wounded sites and that skin would healing delayed in leptin deficient ob/ob mice. These findings strongly suggest the possibility that leptin could be a potential medicine for promoting wound healing. In the present study, the authors investigated whether leptin exerted a promotive influence on the skin would healing even when administered with a low single dosage and one time by using MedGel, a bioabsorbable hydrogel used for a drug delivery system (DDS). First, the expression/localization of leptin receptor (Ob-R) in mouse and human skin was immunohistochemically confirmed. Some epithelial cells of hair follicles were also positive for Ob-R. This finding suggests that epidermal cells and hair follicle cells are target cells of leptin. The area of the wound created in mouse back skin decreased with time much faster in the leptin-treated group. Significantly more blood vessels were distributed in the connective tissue beneath the ulcer in the leptin-treated group. Moreover, leptin showed modest stimulatory effect on the proliferation of human epidermal keratinocytes. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis detected an elevated expression of mRNA encoding Cytokeratin 13, Cytokeratin 14, and Transglutaminase I of human epidermal keratinocytes in the presence of exogenous leptin. An in vitro wound healing assay also revealed that leptin promoted the migration of keratinocytes. The study by the authors demonstrated for the first time that topically administered leptin is capable of accelerating wound healing in the skin by promoting angiogenesis around the wounded area and by enhancing the proliferation, differentiation/function and migration of epidermal keratinocytes. Moreover, this study also clearly demonstrated that leptin is effective for wound healing acceleration even in a single dose when applied topically by using an adequate drug delivery system. These findings are considered to pave the way for the clinical utilization of leptin as a wound healing-promoting agent especially in the treatment and/or prevention of decubital ulcers of increasing elderly patients with poor ADL.
To read more about the featured research work and new potential medical applications of Leptin at Global Medical Discovery in wound healing
The reference for the original paper by the Japanese research team is:
Tadokoro S, Ide S, Tokuyama R, Umeki H, Tatehara S, Kataoka S, Satomura K. PLoS One. 2015; 10(3):e0121242.
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