Chronic wounds develop when the orderly process of cutaneous wound healing is delayed or disrupted. Development of a chronic wound is associated with significant morbidity and financial burden to the individual and health-care system. Therefore, new therapeutic modalities are needed to address this serious condition. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) promote skin repair, but their clinical use has been limited due to technical challenges. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are particles released by cells that carry bioactive molecules (lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids) and regulate intercellular communication. EVs (exosomes, microvesicles, and apoptotic bodies) mediate key therapeutic effects of MSCs. In this review we examine the experimental data establishing a role for EVs in wound healing. Then, we explore techniques for designing EVs to function as a targeted drug delivery system and how EVs can be incorporated into biomaterials to produce a personalized wound dressing. Finally, we discuss the status of clinically deploying EVs as a therapeutic agent in wound care.

Chronic wounds are a significant challenge for patients, healthcare providers, and healthcare systems. Chronic wounds develop due to a complex interplay between chronic inflammation, tissue hypoxia, and oxidative stress, often occurring in the setting of advancing age. Ideally, new therapeutics should address all the components of chronic wound pathophysiology. Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapies show significant promise to promote healing of chronic wounds. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) secreted by MSCs mediate many of their beneficial effects. We review the evidence demonstrating that MSC-EVs target the processes leading to chronic wounds. Additionally, we discuss how MSCs can be influenced to generate more potent wound healing EVs. Finally, we highlight the current state of EV clinical trials for wound healing and important preclinical studies that will lead to optimal use of MSC-EVs for patient care.

Identifying and quantifying pathological changes in brain electrical activity is important for investigations of brain injury and neurological disease. An example is the development of epilepsy, a secondary consequence of traumatic brain injury. While certain epileptiform events can be identified visually from electroencephalographic (EEG) or electrocorticographic (ECoG) records, quantification of these pathological events has proved to be more difficult. In this study we developed MATLAB-based software that would assist detection of pathological brain electrical activity following traumatic brain injury (TBI) and present our MATLAB code used for the analysis of the ECoG.