Advances in drug delivery systems (DDSs) to release growth factors for wound healing and skin regeneration.

Current advances in novel drug delivery systems (DDSs) to release growth factors (GFs) represent a great opportunity to develop new therapies or enhance the effectiveness of available medical treatments. These advances are particularly relevant to the field of regenerative medicine, challenging healthcare issues such as wound healing and skin repair. To this end, biocompatible biomaterials have been extensively studied to improve in vivo integration of DDSs, to enhance the bioactivity of the released drugs and to deliver bioactive molecules in a localised and controlled manner. Thus, this review presents an overview of DDSs to release GFs for skin regeneration, particularly emphasising on (i) polymeric micro and nanospheres, (ii) lipid nanoparticles, (iii) nanofibrous structures, (iv) hydrogels and (v) scaffolds. In addition, this review summarises the current animal models available for studying wound healing and the clinical trials and marketed medications based on GF administration indicated for chronic wound treatment. FROM THE CLINICAL EDITOR: Chronic wounds currently pose a significant burden worldwide. With advances in science, novel drug delivery systems have been developed for growth factors delivery. In this comprehensive review, the authors highlighted current drug delivery systems for the enhancement of wound healing and their use in clinical settings.