Dongqing Li1,4, Guanglin Niu2,4 and Ning Xu Landén2,3 1Key Laboratory of Basic and Translational Research on Immune-Mediated Skin Diseases, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for Skin Diseases and STIs, Institute of Dermatology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Nanjing, China 2Dermatology and Venereology Division, Department of Medicine Solna, Center for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, 17176 Stockholm, Sweden 3Ming Wai Lau Centre for Reparative Medicine, Stockholm Node, Karolinska Institute, 17177 Stockholm, Sweden Correspondence: ning.xuki.se

↵4 These authors contributed equally to this work.

An increasing number of noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) have been found to regulate gene expression and protein functions, playing important roles in diverse biological processes and diseases. Their crucial functions have been reported in almost every cell type and all stages of skin wound healing. Evidence of their pathogenetic roles in common wound complications, such as chronic nonhealing wounds and excessive scarring, is also accumulating. Given their unique expression and functional properties, ncRNAs are promising therapeutic and diagnostic entities. In this review, we discuss current knowledge about the functional roles of noncoding elements, such as microRNAs, long ncRNAs, and circular RNAs, in skin wound healing, focusing on in vivo evidence from studies of human wound samples and animal wound models. Finally, we provide a perspective on the outlook of ncRNA-based therapeutics in wound care.