Cellular heterogeneity in hypertrophic burn scars in response to carbon dioxide laser therapy

Cellular heterogeneity in hypertrophic burn scars in response to carbon dioxide laser therapy | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Cellular heterogeneity in hypertrophic burn scars in response to carbon dioxide laser therapy Janet Lord, Yung-Yi Chen, Christopher Mahony, Jason Turner, Charlotte Smith, and 8 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5503817/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Ablative fractional carbon dioxide (AFCO2) laser therapy is widely used for treating pathological scarring, with promising clinical results. However, mechanisms underlying reduction hypertrophic scarring are poorly understood. We investigated the cellular mechanisms of AFCO2 laser therapy by performing single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) on skin biopsies from burn survivors with hypertrophic scars before and after AFCO2 therapy. Those with a good response (GR) to laser therapy, assessed objectively and subjectively, generally had scars less than 6 years from injury, whereas poor responders (PR) had more mature scars over 6 years since injury. Additionally, scRNA-seq analysis revealed that genes enriched in GR were associated with extracellular matrix and structure organisation (COL14A1, POSTN, SPARC); whereas genes enriched in PR were related to enhanced immune inflammatory responses (CXCL14, JUN, TNC). Distinct intercellular communication networks and differentiation trajectories were observed after AFCO2, with regenerative mesenchymal fibroblasts predominating in GR but inflammatory fibroblasts associated with PR. Biological sciences/Cell biology/Mechanisms of disease Health sciences/Medical research/Outcomes research Hypertrophic scar laser therapy fibroblast cell senescence Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. author has confirmed that they would like to preprint. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5503817","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":382236065,"identity":"7ba8e65b-9a64-4a60-b41e-1a05b6bd5473","order_by":0,"name":"Janet 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