New pharma Fix-a-Form labels could soon be being printed for better drugs to treat wounds, following a new discovery about what goes on in cells.

Scientists at the Scripps Research Institute have identified a new molecular pathway that allows cells to communicate between one another and also permits the healing of cuts.

It was found that cells themselves are able to produce nitric oxide - a signalling molecule involved in temperature sensing and regeneration - whereas this process was previously thought to have taken place outside them.

However, this form of the substance did not require oxygen for its production.

Professor Ardem Patapoutian, lead author of the study, said the discovery "could prove to be crucial in the clinic", as previous drugs had struggled to work when oxygen was cut off due to a disrupted blood supply.

Nitric oxide is an important cellular messenger molecule in the body, not to be confused with the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide or the air pollutant nitrogen dioxide.

Denny Bros Ltd, 01 July 2011