Reprogramming of epidermal keratinocytes by PITX1 transforms the cutaneous cellular landscape and promotes wound healing [Xenium]

Skin injuries heal slowly, compared to oral epithelial tissues, and often do not regenerate lost adnexa. Using a murine mouse model expressing the oral epithelial transcription factor PITX1 in the skin, we performed Xenium in situ analysis in healthy and wounded skin and healthy oral mucosa to delineate the cellular and molecular changes underpinning the superior oral wounding response. Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded murine skin (healthy or POD4-wounds, Control and PITX1+) or buccal mucosa (healthy Control) was processed for Xenium in situ analysis to determine spatial localization and expression of selected mRNA transcripts.