Noury Adel, Jack Kolenda
BACKGROUND: Optimizing cutaneous wound healing remains a priority in dermatology and plastic surgery. Bioactive injectables such as NCTF and VAMP are gaining interest for their potential to enhance angiogenesis and tissue regeneration, yet their combined effects remain underexplored. OBJECTIVE: To compare the effects of NCTF, VAMP, and their combination on full thickness skin wound healing in an experimental hamster model, using histological and immunohistochemical analyses. METHODS: One hundred forty-four adult hamsters were randomly assigned to four groups: (1) control (full thickness 2 cm length & 2 mm width dorsal incision, no injection), (2) NCTF (0.1 mL), (3) VAMP (0.1 mL), and (4) combined NCTF + VAMP (0.05 mL each). Wounds were evaluated at baseline, day 3, day 7, and day 14. Tissue samples underwent hematoxylin-eosin (HE) and Masson's trichrome (MT) staining for histological assessment, and immunohistochemical staining for CD34 was performed to evaluate angiogenesis and capillary density. RESULTS: All treatment groups showed faster wound closure, greater collagen deposition, and higher microvessel density than controls. The combination therapy produced the most pronounced improvements, followed by NCTF alone, then VAMP alone, with the control group showing the slowest healing. CD34 positive capillary density and collagen fiber alignment were significantly superior in the combination group at days 7 and 14 (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: NCTF and VAMP both enhance full thickness skin wound healing, with the combination achieving the greatest histological and angiogenic improvements. These findings pertain to early and intermediate phases of wound healing (up to 14 days) and suggest potential benefit of combination therapy, pending further studies in larger animal models and clinical trials.