Evidence map›Paper›PMID 24109178›Full record

ArticleDrug design, development and therapy2013

A novel dimeric thymosin beta 4 with enhanced activities accelerates the rate of wound healing.

Tian-Jiao Xu, Qi Wang, Xiao-Wen Ma, Zhen Zhang, Wei Zhang, Xiao-Chang Xue, Cun Zhang, Qiang Hao, Wei-Na Li, Ying-Qi Zhang and 1 more

Open access · goldAbstract readComparative Study
In one paragraph

Article in Drug design, development and therapy, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
0.7field-weighted citation impact, top 31% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 13 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Engineered Tandem Thymosin Peptide Promotes Corneal Wound Healing.Investigative ophthalmology & visual science · 2025
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Effect of vitamin A deficiency on thymosin-β4 and CD4 concentrations.Journal, genetic engineering & biotechnology · 2018
    Article
  6. The Hidden Function of Vitamin D.Open access Macedonian journal of medical sciences · 2016
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Tian-Jiao XuState Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Biotechnology Center, School of Pharmacy, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, People's Republic of China ; The Institute of Medicine, Qiqihar Medical University, Qiqihar, People's Republic of China.
Qi Wang
Xiao-Wen Ma
Zhen Zhang
Wei Zhang
Xiao-Chang Xue
Cun Zhang
Qiang Hao
Wei-Na Li
Ying-Qi Zhang
Meng Li
Air Force Medical University · CNQiqihar Medical University · CNUniversity of Kansas Medical Center · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveThymosin beta 4 (Tβ4) is a peptide with 43 amino acids that is critical for repair and remodeling tissues on the skin, eye, heart, and neural system following injury. To fully realize its utility as a treatment for disease caused by injury, the authors constructed a cost-effective novel Tβ4 dimer and demonstrated that it was better able to accelerate tissue repair than native Tβ4.

methodsA prokaryotic vector harboring two complete Tβ4 genes with a short linker was constructed and expressed in Escherichia coli. A pilot-scale fermentation (10 L) was performed to produce engineered bacteria and the Tβ4 dimer was purified by one-step hydrophobic interaction chromatography. The activities of the Tβ4 dimer to promote endothelial cell proliferation, migration, and sprouting were assessed by tetramethylbenzidine (methylthiazol tetrazolium), trans-well, scratch, and tube formation assays. The ability to accelerate dermal healing was assessed on rats.

resultsAfter fermentation, the Tβ4 dimer accounted for about 30% of all the bacteria proteins. The purity of the Tβ4 dimer reached 98% after hydrophobic interaction chromatography purification. An average of 562.4 mg/L Tβ4 dimer was acquired using a 10 L fermenter. In each assay, the dimeric Tβ4 exhibited enhanced activities compared with native Tβ4. Notably, the ability of the dimeric Tβ4 to promote cell migration was almost two times higher than that of Tβ4. The rate of dermal healing in the dimeric Tβ4-treated rats was approximately 1 day faster than with native Tβ4-treated rats.

conclusionThe dimeric Tβ4 exhibited enhanced activity on wound healing than native Tβ4, and the purification process was simple and cost-effective. This data could be of significant benefit for the high pain and morbidity associated with chronic wounds disease. A better strategy to develop Tβ4 as a treatment for other diseases caused by injuries such as heart attack, neurotrophic keratitis, and multiple sclerosis was also described.

Indexed as

AnimalsCell MovementCell ProliferationChromatography, High Pressure LiquidCost-Benefit AnalysisEscherichia coliFemaleFermentationGenetic VectorsHumansHuman Umbilical Vein Endothelial CellsMalePilot ProjectsRatsRats, Sprague-DawleyThymosinThymosinThymosin beta(4)dimergenetic engineeringpeptidethymosin beta 4tissue repairwound healing

Identifiers

PMID24109178
PMCPMC3792846
OpenAlexW2092611645

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.