Culture research on skin healing and exposure to sunlight [Cicatrizzazione cutanea e fotoesposizione. Ricerche colturali]

It is well-known that wounds of the face, the most exposed area of the body heal more rapidly than others because of the rich blood supply to that region. To evaluate aspects of the proliferative capacity of facial cutaneous cells independent of local circulatory factors, cultures of epidermal cells of the face and abdomen were compared. Results showed that the cultured cells of the face have, in the primary stages of their life in vitro, a larger proliferative capacity than the abdominal cells rarely exposed to light. This suggests that, apart from local nutritional conditions, other factors are present, responsible for the control of cell proliferation, which in its turn can influence the speed of wound healing. One of these factors could be the exposure to sunlight.