phytochemicals regulate fibroblast cell migration via modulation of focal adhesions.

The plant contains phytochemicals that have been used extensively in traditional medicine to treat various diseases. More recently it has been shown to accelerate wound healing, though its mechanism of action is largely unknown. Here we investigated the cellular pathways activated by a methanol extract of in human dermal fibroblasts, which play many critical roles in the wound healing program. Gene expression analysis revealed that the extract can modulate multiple processes involved in the wound healing program such as migration, proliferation, and angiogenesis. We discovered that the extract can increase migration of fibroblasts via modulating the size and number of focal adhesions. -mediated changes in focal adhesions are dependent on α5β1 integrin activation and subsequent phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK). Altogether our results suggest that extract could enhance the wound healing rate via modulating fibroblast migration into the wound bed.