| Skin is the human body's largest organ and protects | | | | patient's own skin has been required in the past. In |
| the body from disease, such as infection, and physical | | | | this case, the physician has been restricted to what |
| damage, and helps to regulate body temperature. | | | | skin the patient has available, a decided disadvantage |
| Human skin is composed of two major layers, the | | | | in the case of severe burn victims. However, new |
| epidermis and the dermis. The epidermis, or outer | | | | techniques are now available, most prominently |
| layer, is composed primarily of keratinocytes, | | | | artificial skin. |
| melanocytes, and langerhans type of cells. The | | | | Using a proprietary variation of a technique originally |
| dermis is composed primarily of connective tissue | | | | developed at M.I.T. by Dr. R. Langer, A & G Skin |
| fibers such as collagen, which is important for the | | | | Solutions, Inc. manufactures artificial skin by using |
| structural integrity of skin. Along with soft keratin, it | | | | extracted fibroblasts that are added to collagen, a |
| is responsible for skin strength and elasticity, and its | | | | fibrous protein found in connective tissue. When the |
| degradation leads to wrinkles and sagging that | | | | collagen is heated, a gel forms and traps the |
| accompany aging. | | | | fibroblasts, which in turn arrange themselves around |
| When the skin has been seriously damaged through | | | | the collagen, becoming compact, dense, symmetrical, |
| disease, such as diabetic ulcers, or burns, the body | | | | and fibrous. The gel is embedded in a polymer |
| cannot act rapidly enough to manufacture the | | | | meshwork that acts as a scaffolding to give the |
| necessary replacement cells. Often the wounds | | | | artificial skin its shape and strength. A & G Skin |
| associated with diabetic skin ulcers do not heal and | | | | Solutions uses many more methologies for the |
| limbs must be amputated. In severe burns, the | | | | production of their artificial skin, including cutting-edge, |
| victims may die from infection and the loss of plasma. | | | | expensive cell sorting techniques, but the |
| Skin grafts were developed as a way to prevent | | | | aforementioned is the basis for production. |
| such consequences as well as to correct deformities. | | | | A & G’s artificial skin graft offers several |
| Gaspare Tagliacozzo, an Italian physician at the | | | | advantages over those derived from the patient and |
| University of Bologna, was the first to use skin grafts | | | | cadavers, including the elimination of rejection and of |
| in Western medicine. In about 1580, Tagliacozzo | | | | the need for further injuring the patient through |
| began grafting skin flaps from the patient's arms to | | | | acquisition of skin from adjacent areas to the wound. |
| reconstruct the nose. | | | | Further, artificial skin eliminates the need for tissue |
| Until the 1990s, skin grafts were constructed from | | | | typing, and can be made in large quantities and |
| the patient's own skin (autografts) or cadaver skin | | | | stored near the wound care center, allowing the |
| (allografts). Infection and, in the case of cadaver skin, | | | | product to be available as needed. Each culture is |
| rejection were primary concerns. While skin grafted | | | | screened for pathogens, severely curtailing the |
| from one part of a patient's body to another is not | | | | chance of infection. To emphasize, because artificial |
| rejected by the immune system, skin grafts from a | | | | skin does not contain immunogenic cells such as |
| donor to a recipient are rejected more aggressively | | | | dendritic cells and capillary endothelial cells, it is not |
| than any other tissue graft or transplant. Although | | | | rejected by the body. A huge benefit of A & |
| cadaver skin may be used to provide protection | | | | G’s artificial skin is that the rehabilitation time is |
| from infection and loss of fluids during a burn victim's | | | | significantly reduced, with a concomitant reduction in |
| initial healing period, a subsequent graft of the | | | | pain. |