A new study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences has identified an RNA molecule that is important for skin wound healing. The research, published in Nature Communications, may have implications for the treatment of hard-to-heal wounds.

The study focuses on the molecular processes in wound healing that regulate the transition from inflammation -- a critical defence mechanism -- to a proliferative phase, where new cells form to repair damaged tissue.

Researchers have now mapped lncRNA (long non-coding RNA molecules) in human skin wounds in tissue samples from Karolinska University Hospital, identifying a key regulator in wound healing.

Our study reveals that the lncRNA molecule SNHG26 plays a pivotal role in guiding skin cells through the stages of wound healing, from an inflammatory stage to a healing phase, explains Ning Xu Landén, docent at the Department of Medicine, Solna, Karolinska Institutet.

The researchers also used mouse models to uncover how this molecule interacts with genes involved in inflammation and tissue regeneration.