**3. Wound-healing cascade**

Wound healing, the normal response in mammals to injury, is a complex and dynamic biological process that is evolutionarily conserved, highly coordinated, and spatiotemporally regulated. The wound-healing cascade has three sequential yet overlapping but distinct phases: inflammation, new tissue formation, and remodeling [12, 16, 24]. These coordinated phases of healing involve the interaction of immune and nonimmune cells, as well as soluble mediators and extracellular matrix components [16, 25]. Additionally, the dynamic link between skin and the microbial population also contributes to the process outcome. Under normal circumstances, wounds heal by themselves, but depending on the extent of tissue damage, the process varies [26, 27]. Wound healing is a very interesting research field, with many mechanisms still not fully understood.

The process of wound healing initiates immediately after injury with the hemostasis phase. The fibrin clot formed here acts like a barrier and leads to moisture retention [10]. Traditional gauze-based dressings target this healing phase by retaining moisture and preventing excessive bleeding [28]. This is followed by inflammation (beginning soon after injury), which may continue for a week with the release of proinflammatory cytokines from injured tissue leading to the attraction of circulating leucocytes at the site [29]. Subsequently, the proliferation phase starts, which involves angiogenesis, granulation, epithelialization, and wound contraction. Finally, after around 3 weeks of injury begins the maturation phase, which might take as long as 2 years for completion [30]. The cascade of wound-healing events along with the signaling and the cellular changes involved is further discussed in detail and diagrammatically explained in **Figure 1**.

#### **Figure 1.**

*Diagrammatic representation of various nanotechnology-based therapies used in different stages of wound healing. The currently employed nanostrategies for wound management are presented in this figure. The list provided here is intended to be just an illustration and is not comprehensive.*

*Nanotechnological Interventions and Mechanistic Insights into Wound-Healing Events DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.106481*
