A novel method for accelerating surgical wound healing in rabbits by collagen extraction from carp (Cyprinus carpio) fish skin

Recycling biological aquatic environment waste products is considered a source of biomaterials and a challenge in biomedicine. This study aims to investigate the functional group of collagens extracted from fish skin and to evaluate its activity in accelerating wound healing based on a statistical descriptive histogram of the mean wound area, contraction, and healing rate, along with a semi-qualitative gross assessment. This includes histological evaluations of both healing criteria (inflammatory cells, collagen deposition, maturation of granulation tissue, angiogenesis, and re-epithelization) and the expression of protein genes related to collagen III, vascular endothelial growth factor, and keratin-14. Collagen was chemically extracted from carp fish skin and applied three times daily to induce wounds in the paralumbar region of rabbits. The extracted collagen was characterized by low viscosity, transparency, and a watery consistency; the functional groups of collagens were detected using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. Semi-qualitative analysis revealed improved gross inflammatory features, a statistically significant reduction in wound area, and a high contraction rate in the treated group. The descriptive histogram indicated a highly significant healing rate of 0.59 in the treated group. The healing criteria showed mild infiltration of inflammatory cells and maturation of granulation tissue. Histochemical analysis demonstrated thick, parallel collagen bundles over seven days in the CoIII-treated group, with these pathophysiological events combined with intense immunohistochemistry staining of collagen III, vascular endothelial growth factors, and keratin-14 expression at the wound biopsy. This study concludes that collagen extracted from carp skin can be an innovative therapeutic substance in regenerative medicine, accelerating wound healing.