Nanoflares shine a light on formation of scar tissue

Clinicians currently find it difficult to predict how scars will develop without resorting to invasive testing.

Using the new nanoparticles, the joint research team from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and Northwestern University has shown in animals and human skin samples the potential to quickly and accurately predict whether a wound is likely to lead to excessive scarring.

If necessary, doctors can then take conventional preventive measures to reduce scar formation, such as using silicon sheets to keep a wound flat and moist.

The new technique was developed by a team led by Assistant Professor Xu Chenjie from NTU’s School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, nanoscience expert Professor Chad A Mirkin from Northwestern University, and Dr Amy S Paller, Chair of Dermatology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, the new detection method is said to use thousands of nanoparticles called NanoFlares, which have DNA strands attached to their surfaces like a ball of spikes.