24 citations
,
May 2019 in “PLOS ONE” In this study, researchers observed that African spiny mice, Acomys cahirinus, are capable of regenerating skeletal muscle in dermal wound sites, unlike common mice, Mus musculus.
13 citations
,
January 2020 in “Scientific Reports” This study found distinct differences in protein expression and wound healing pathways between Acomys cahirinus and Mus musculus, highlighting potential targets for reducing fibrotic response in mammals.
40 citations
,
November 2021 in “npj Regenerative Medicine” In this study, spiny mice showed superior cardiac recovery after myocardial infarction compared to other mouse strains, with enhanced myocardial preservation and functional stabilization.
418 citations
,
September 2012 in “Nature” This study reports the first instance of skin autotomy in mammals, specifically in African spiny mice, and suggests they may possess a greater regenerative capacity than previously understood, possibly offering insights for regenerative medicine.
April 2019 in “The journal of investigative dermatology/Journal of investigative dermatology” This study found that manipulating both gene expression and matrix stiffness in mice can alter hair regeneration after skin wounding, highlighting key factors in regenerative biology.
39 citations
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June 2018 in “Burns” This study found that the spiny mouse can regenerate tissues such as skeletal muscle, dermis, and hair without scarring after full thickness thermal burns, unlike the lab mouse.
June 2022 in “bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)” This study found that MAPK/ERK signaling plays a key role in driving tissue regeneration in spiny mice and suggests potential for reversing fibrosis to promote regeneration in mammals.
This study suggests that the exercise-induced cytokine IL-15 can improve wound healing in aged skin, along with previously reported benefits on skin structure and mitochondrial function.
4 citations
,
January 2025 in “Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences” This review explores how spiny mice (Acomys spp.) exhibit unique regenerative healing abilities, with findings indicating that these rodents use specialized injury response mechanisms and proregenerative pathways to enhance tissue repair and regeneration compared to scar-forming mammals.
January 2023 in “Biomaterials Science” This study suggests that incorporating matrisomal components into biomaterials could enhance skin wound healing in mammals that do not naturally regenerate tissues like the axolotl and Acomys.
April 2018 in “Journal of Investigative Dermatology” African spiny mice can regenerate skin and hair after wounds due to specific tissue mechanics.
37 citations
,
February 2019 in “Experimental Dermatology” This study explored the regenerative abilities of the African spiny mouse's skin, revealing more robust wound-induced hair follicle neogenesis compared to laboratory mice and highlighting unique features of its hair and wound response.
5 citations
,
August 2023 in “G3 Genes Genomes Genetics” This study developed an improved reference genome for the African spiny mouse using long Nanopore sequencing reads, potentially aiding future research into the species' remarkable tissue regeneration capabilities.
4 citations
,
April 2023 in “bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)” This study presents an improved reference genome for the African spiny mouse, which may aid in understanding its tissue regeneration at the molecular level.
1 citations
,
August 2023 in “Genome research” This study found that in spiny mice, the proximal side of ear wounds is crucial for regeneration, a process possibly linked to unique injury-induced immune responses compared to nonregenerative rodents.
1 citations
,
April 2023 in “Science Advances” This study found that sustained ERK activity during tissue regeneration in spiny mice is linked to fibroblast growth factor and ErbB signaling, while inhibiting ERK shifted regeneration toward scarring.
March 2026 in “bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)” In this study, researchers discovered a honeycomb-like structure in the skin of spiny mice that facilitates tissue shedding and regeneration, attributed to a uniquely arranged collagen VI and influenced by spiny hair development.
24 citations
,
May 2018 in “Journal of Molecular Endocrinology” This article discusses the discovery of the first known menstruating rodent, the spiny mouse, and proposes that a significant increase in progesterone during the luteal phase is a unique feature of menstruating species, but reports no new experimental results.
19 citations
,
November 2018 in “Experimental Dermatology” This review explores the skin regeneration process in spiny mice and highlights differences from laboratory mice, focusing on potential molecular and immune system roles without reporting new experimental results.
February 2025 in “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences” Only Deomyinae rodents can regenerate complex tissues.
22 citations
,
May 2021 in “Nature Communications” This study found that in wound-induced hair neogenesis, African spiny mice and laboratory mice exhibit different morphogenetic field formation patterns related to tissue stiffness, suggesting evolutionary developmental biology advantages.
1 citations
,
August 2023 in “bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)” This study explores ear pinna development in mice and reports that elastic cartilage formation is disrupted in a short ear mutant, correlating with increased adult adipocytes and impaired chondrogenesis.
1 citations
,
January 2019 in “The International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds” This study demonstrated in rodent models that artificial dermal template treatment can induce full-thickness skin regrowth including skin epidermis and adnexa without the need for autologous skin grafts.
408 citations
,
January 2017 in “Science” This study found that hair follicles in mice and humans can convert wound-related myofibroblasts into adipocytes, suggesting a potential pathway to reduce scar formation by activating BMP signaling.
359 citations
,
January 2015 in “Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Medicine” This article reviews the role of skin appendages in wound healing and appendage regeneration, discussing cellular and molecular mechanisms but reports no new experimental findings.
301 citations
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February 2019 in “Nature Communications” In this study, researchers found that wound healing in mouse skin recruits diverse fibroblasts, including myeloid-derived cells, which contribute to regenerating adipocytes.
252 citations
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February 2018 in “npj Regenerative Medicine” This review explores recent advances in understanding molecular mechanisms of tissue regeneration in mammals and suggests potential therapeutic targets, but it reports no new clinical results.
145 citations
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November 2018 in “Nature Communications” This study found that activating the Sonic hedgehog pathway in scarring wounds can remodel the dermis to promote hair follicle regeneration, highlighting a potential new approach to enhance healing.
85 citations
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December 2017 in “Developmental Biology” This review discusses mammalian models of epimorphic regeneration to define a vertebrate regeneration blastema, concluding that regenerative failure likely stems from cellular responses to the microenvironment after injury, not progenitor cell availability, and calls for targeted modification studies in mammals to advance human regeneration.
74 citations
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January 2013 in “Expert Opinion on Biological Therapy” This review discusses recent advances in hair follicle biology, regeneration, and tissue engineering, highlighting emerging therapeutic opportunities, and reports no new experimental results.