EXODIAMOND | From Scientific Insight to Future Bioinnovation

A wound occurs when the structural and functional integrity of tissue is disrupted by physical, chemical, thermal or biological injury, initiating a highly coordinated sequence of cellular and molecular responses. Tissue repair begins with haemostasis, followed by inflammation, during which immune cells remove damaged material and establish the conditions for regeneration and repair.

As healing progresses, keratinocytes migrate to restore the epithelial barrier, fibroblasts contribute to extracellular matrix formation, and endothelial cells support the development of new blood vessels.

Throughout these overlapping phases, cellular communication is mediated by signalling molecules and extracellular vesicles, including exosomes — small membrane-bound vesicles of endosomal origin that participate in intercellular communication by carrying biologically active molecular cargo.

Scientific research indicates that extracellular vesicle-mediated signalling is involved across the overlapping phases of wound healing, contributing to the modulation of inflammatory responses, cellular migration and proliferation, angiogenesis, and extracellular matrix remodelling.

During the final remodelling phase, collagen fibres are progressively reorganised, vascularity changes and the newly formed tissue gains tensile strength. Where healing involves fibrous tissue replacement, scar formation and subsequent scar maturation reflect the continuing balance between extracellular matrix deposition, degradation and tissue remodelling.