The female, red Duroc pig as an animal model of hypertrophic scarring and the potential role of the cones of skin

Hypertrophic scarring occurs after deep dermal wounds. Our understanding of the etiology is poor; one reason is the lack of an animal model. In 1972, Silverstein described scarring in the Duroc pig but the model was never confirmed nor disproved. Another reason, as we previously suggested, is that hypertrophic scarring only occurs within regions of human skin that contain cones and the cones have not been studied in relation to hypertrophic scarring. We, therefore (i) explored healing in the female, red Duroc model for similarities to human hypertrophic scarring, studying wound thickness, appearance, healing status at 3 weeks, histology, and immunocytochemical localization of decorin, versican, TGFβ1 and IGF-1; and (ii) examined Duroc skin for cones. We found that healing after deep wounds in Duroc pigs is similar, but not identical, to human hypertrophic scarring. We also found that Duroc skin contains cones. Healing in the female, red Duroc pig is sufficiently similar to human hypertrophic scarring to warrant further study so that it can be accepted or rejected as a model of human hypertrophic scarring. In addition, the relationship of the cones to hypertrophic scarring needs further detail and can be studied in this model.