Natural Products for Improving Soft Tissue Healing: Mechanisms, Innovations, and Clinical Potential
Scar development is a notable clinical and aesthetic issue in soft tissue healing, frequently compromising functionality and quality of life. Conventional treatments demonstrate limited efficacy in avoiding fibrosis and facilitating regenerative repair. Nevertheless, natural compounds have surfaced...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Pharmaceutics |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/17/6/758 |
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| author | Adina Alberts Ioana Alexandra Lungescu Adelina-Gabriela Niculescu Alexandru Mihai Grumezescu |
| author_facet | Adina Alberts Ioana Alexandra Lungescu Adelina-Gabriela Niculescu Alexandru Mihai Grumezescu |
| author_sort | Adina Alberts |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Scar development is a notable clinical and aesthetic issue in soft tissue healing, frequently compromising functionality and quality of life. Conventional treatments demonstrate limited efficacy in avoiding fibrosis and facilitating regenerative repair. Nevertheless, natural compounds have surfaced as viable alternatives owing to their biocompatibility, multitarget bioactivity, and historical application in traditional medicine. This review examines the therapeutic potential of plant-derived substances, marine agents, and microbial metabolites in influencing critical stages of wound healing, including inflammation, oxidative stress, fibroblast activation, and extracellular matrix remodeling. While these agents have demonstrated beneficial effects in preclinical models, their direct impact on functional or aesthetic clinical outcomes remains under investigation. We propose a hierarchical framework linking molecular mechanisms to clinical endpoints, suggesting that improvements at the cellular and molecular level may eventually support better healing quality. Natural bioactives, especially when integrated into advanced delivery systems such as hydrogels and nanocarriers, show promise for enhancing the regenerative microenvironment. By contextualizing these mechanisms within real-world therapeutic goals, this review highlights both the potential and limitations of natural products in the pursuit of improved soft tissue healing. Further translational research is needed to determine how modulation of these processes may reduce scarring and approach clinically meaningful outcomes. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1be84eaecc104191bdace8b0fbe2d1b6 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1999-4923 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Pharmaceutics |
| spelling | doaj-art-1be84eaecc104191bdace8b0fbe2d1b62025-08-20T03:27:39ZengMDPI AGPharmaceutics1999-49232025-06-0117675810.3390/pharmaceutics17060758Natural Products for Improving Soft Tissue Healing: Mechanisms, Innovations, and Clinical PotentialAdina Alberts0Ioana Alexandra Lungescu1Adelina-Gabriela Niculescu2Alexandru Mihai Grumezescu3Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 050474 Bucharest, RomaniaNational University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 011061 Bucharest, RomaniaNational University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 011061 Bucharest, RomaniaNational University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 011061 Bucharest, RomaniaScar development is a notable clinical and aesthetic issue in soft tissue healing, frequently compromising functionality and quality of life. Conventional treatments demonstrate limited efficacy in avoiding fibrosis and facilitating regenerative repair. Nevertheless, natural compounds have surfaced as viable alternatives owing to their biocompatibility, multitarget bioactivity, and historical application in traditional medicine. This review examines the therapeutic potential of plant-derived substances, marine agents, and microbial metabolites in influencing critical stages of wound healing, including inflammation, oxidative stress, fibroblast activation, and extracellular matrix remodeling. While these agents have demonstrated beneficial effects in preclinical models, their direct impact on functional or aesthetic clinical outcomes remains under investigation. We propose a hierarchical framework linking molecular mechanisms to clinical endpoints, suggesting that improvements at the cellular and molecular level may eventually support better healing quality. Natural bioactives, especially when integrated into advanced delivery systems such as hydrogels and nanocarriers, show promise for enhancing the regenerative microenvironment. By contextualizing these mechanisms within real-world therapeutic goals, this review highlights both the potential and limitations of natural products in the pursuit of improved soft tissue healing. Further translational research is needed to determine how modulation of these processes may reduce scarring and approach clinically meaningful outcomes.https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/17/6/758natural productsscar-free healingwound healinganti-inflammatoryantioxidantfibrosis inhibition |
| spellingShingle | Adina Alberts Ioana Alexandra Lungescu Adelina-Gabriela Niculescu Alexandru Mihai Grumezescu Natural Products for Improving Soft Tissue Healing: Mechanisms, Innovations, and Clinical Potential Pharmaceutics natural products scar-free healing wound healing anti-inflammatory antioxidant fibrosis inhibition |
| title | Natural Products for Improving Soft Tissue Healing: Mechanisms, Innovations, and Clinical Potential |
| title_full | Natural Products for Improving Soft Tissue Healing: Mechanisms, Innovations, and Clinical Potential |
| title_fullStr | Natural Products for Improving Soft Tissue Healing: Mechanisms, Innovations, and Clinical Potential |
| title_full_unstemmed | Natural Products for Improving Soft Tissue Healing: Mechanisms, Innovations, and Clinical Potential |
| title_short | Natural Products for Improving Soft Tissue Healing: Mechanisms, Innovations, and Clinical Potential |
| title_sort | natural products for improving soft tissue healing mechanisms innovations and clinical potential |
| topic | natural products scar-free healing wound healing anti-inflammatory antioxidant fibrosis inhibition |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/17/6/758 |
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