Collagen unfolding accelerates water influx, determining hydration in the interstitial matrix.

ABSTRACT: In the interstitial matrix, collagen unfolding at physiologic temperatures is thought to facilitate interactions with enzymes and scaffold molecules during inflammation, tissue remodeling, and wound healing. We tested the hypothesis that it also plays a role in modulating flows and matrix hydration potential. After progressively unfolding dermal collagen in situ, we measured the hydration parameters by osmotic stress techniques and modeled them as linear functions of unfolded collagen, quantified by differential scanning calorimetry after timed heat treatment. Consistent with the hypothetical model, the thermodynamic and flow parameters obtained experimentally were related linearly to the unfolded collagen fraction. The increases in relative humidity and intensity of T(2) maps were also co

SUBMITTER: McGee MP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3512047 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature