β-Glucans obtained from fungus for wound healing: A review

The cell surface of fungus contains a large number of β-glucans, which exhibit various biological activities such as immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidation. Fungal β-glucans with highly branched structure show great potential as wound healing reagents, because they can stimulate the expression of many immune- and inflammatory-related factors beneficial to wound healing. Recently, the wound healing ability of many fungal β-glucans have been investigated in animals and clinical trials. Studies have proved that fungal β-glucans can promote fibroblasts proliferation, collagen deposition, angiogenesis, and macrophage infiltration during the wound healing process. However, the development of fungal β-glucans as wound healing reagents is not systematically reviewed till now. This review discusses the wound healing studies of β-glucans obtained from different fungal species. The structure characteristics, extraction methods, and biological functions of fungal β-glucans with wound healing ability are summarized. Researches about fungal β-glucan-containing biomaterials and structurally modified β-glucans for wound healing are also involved.