Application of a minimally invasive full-thickness autologous microcolumn skin harvesting device for donor site tissue collection and augmenting wound healing in a porcine wound model

Using a 6-week porcine full-thickness excisional wound grafting model, we evaluated the Autologous Regeneration of Tissue (ART®) System, a novel skin harvesting device designed to collect autologous full-thickness autologous microcolumns (FTAM) at 0.5 mm in diameter. The donor skin sites were harvested using the ART® System and compared to split-thickness skin grafts (STSGs). Recipient sites were divided into three treatment groups: FTAM, STSG and Untreated control. Comparing the FTAM donor sites to the STSG donor sites, we observed significantly faster re-epithelization by Day 4 (p < 0.05), earlier adnexal structures and rete ridge formation by Week 3, and increased collagen and elastin content by Week 6. We also observed an increased rate of healing at the FTAM donor site whilst limiting donor site morbidity compared to traditional STSG donor sites. Time to recipient site closure was 2.4 weeks for STSG treated, 3.3 weeks for FTAM treated and 4.1 weeks for the Untreated control (p < 0.05). The STSG and FTAM recipient sites reached complete re-epithelialization by Weeks 4 and 5, respectively which was significantly faster compared to the Untreated control. However, the FTAM recipient site received only 10% of the donor site tissue relative to the recipient site area and the amount of donor site tissue grafted on the STSG recipient sites was 5× more than the FTAM recipient sites. Additionally, the FTAMs harvested by the ART® System augmented recipient wound site healing as a result of ‘epithelial island’ expansion in contrast to Untreated control sites that closed primarily by contracture.