Thiamine influence on collagen during the granulation of skin wounds

To determine the effect of thiamine (vitamin B₁) on collagen production during wound healing, hydroxyproline content (HP), lysyl oxidase activity (LO), and pepsin-solubilized collagen components were examined in dermis, wound fluid, and artificially induced granulation tissue from surgically wounded rats. Rats were divided into three groups: thiamine-deficient diet (?B₁); thiamine-deficient diet supplemented with 3 mg thiamine-HCl (+3B₁); and thiamine-deficient diet supplemented with 1 mg thiamine-HCl (+B₁) (pair fed). When rats from the ?B₁ group were demonstrated to be deficient in urinary thiamine, all of the experimental animals had one polyvinyl alcohol wound chamber implanted subcutaneously. Differences were observed in: HP concentration between ?B₁ and both +3B₁ and +B₁ in granulation tissue and wound fluid, and LO between ?B₁ and +B₁ in skin and granulation tissue. Both high- and low-molecular-weight collagenous components extracted from granulation tissue were greater for +3B₁ and +B₁, than for ?B₁. The most dramatic findings were in the higher molecular weight component characterized as Type III collagen. The alterations observed in the collagen contents and maturation of granulation tissue demonstrate an involvement of thiamine in wound repair and scar development.