Swollen eyeball: Causes, symptoms, and treatments

Revolutionary Chronic Wound Treatment Could Help Millions

An effective treatment for chronic wounds that does not involve antibiotics, but an ionised gas to activate a wound dressing, has been developed by a team of international scientists.

The treatment involves the plasma activation of hydrogel dressings (that are commonly used in wound dressings) with a unique mix of different chemical oxidants that are effective in decontaminating and aid healing in chronic wounds.

Researchers from the University of Sheffield and University of South Australia, who led the study, believe the new method is a significant advance in tackling antibiotic resistance pathogens and has the potential to change the treatment of diabetic foot ulcers and internal wounds.

Professor Rob Short, Professor of Chemistry at the University of Sheffield who co-authored the study, said: "More than 540 million people are living with diabetes worldwide, of which 30 per cent will develop a foot ulcer during their lifetime. This is a neglected global pandemic which is set to increase further in the coming years due to a rise in obesity and lack of exercise.

"In England alone between 60,000 and 75,000 people are being treated for diabetic foot ulcers per week. Infection is one of the major risks. Increasingly, many infections do not respond to normal antibiotic treatment due to resistant bacteria which results in 7,000 amputations per year.

"There is an urgent need for innovation in wound management and treatment and it is a real privilege to be part of the international team who have been working on this alternative treatment for over 10 years."

The cost of managing chronic wounds such as diabetic foot ulcers already exceeds $17 billion US dollars annually.

The benefits of cold plasma ionised gas have already been proven in clinical trials, showing it controls not only infection but also stimulates healing. This is due to the potent chemical cocktail of oxidants, namely reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS) it produces when it mixes and activates the oxygen and nitrogen molecules in the ambient air.

Dr Endre Szili, from the University of South Australia who led the study, published this week in the journal Advanced Functional Materials, said: "Antibiotics and silver dressings are commonly used to treat chronic wounds, but both have drawbacks.

"Growing resistance to antibiotics is a global challenge and there are also major concerns over silver-induced toxicity. In Europe, silver dressings are being phased out for this reason."

The international team of scientists have shown that plasma activating hydrogel dressings with RONS makes the gel far more powerful, killing common bacteria.

Although diabetic foot ulcers were the focus of this study, the technology could be applied to all chronic wounds and internal infections.

"Despite recent encouraging results in the use of plasma activated hydrogel therapy (PAHT), we faced the challenge of loading hydrogels with sufficient concentrations of RONS required for clinical use. We have overcome this hurdle by employing a new electrochemical method that enhances the hydrogel activation," said Dr Szili.

As well as killing common bacteria (E. Coli and P. Aeruginosa) that cause wounds to become infected, the researchers say that the plasma activated hydrogels might also help trigger the body's immune system, which can help fight infections.

"Chronic wound infections are a silent pandemic threatening to become a global healthcare crisis," added Dr Szili.

"It is imperative that we find alternative treatments to antibiotics and silver dressings because when these treatments don't work, amputations often occur."

"A major advantage of our PAHT technology is that it can be used for treating all wounds. It is an environmentally safe treatment that uses the natural components in air and water to make its active ingredients, which degrade to non-toxic and biocompatible components."

"The active ingredients could be delivered over a lengthy period, improving treatment, with a better chance of penetrating a tumour.

"Plasma has massive potential in the medical world, and this is just the tip of the iceberg," Dr Szili says.

The next step will involve clinical trials to optimise the electrochemical technology for treatment in human patients.

A video explaining the treatment is available at: https://youtu.Be/TdwfA9narMg

Wound Treatment Gel Fights The Battle Against Antibacterial Resistance

Hydrogels are popular for use in skin ailments and tissue engineering. These polymer-based biocompatible materials are useful for their abilities to retain water, deliver drugs into wounds, and biodegrade. However, they are complicated to manufacture and not very resilient to external forces like rubbing against clothing, sheets, or wound dressings. They are also not inherently able to battle bacterial infections, so they are often infused with antimicrobial drugs or metal ions, which can cause antibiotic resistance and negative effects on cell growth.

In a paper published this week in APL Materials, by AIP Publishing, researchers created a hydrogel that is easier to synthesize, contains natural antibiotic properties, and promotes cell growth.

"A diabetic patient may have skin wounds that do not heal easily due to metabolic disease," author Jing Sun said. "The patient may try to treat the wounds with topical medicines such as erythromycin, and it may be effective at first, but over a long period of time, it may fail to relieve symptoms. This could be due to antibiotic resistance."

Using the common hydrogel Gel-MA, they added the amino acid polylysine and platelet-rich blood plasma to create properties that are well-suited to wound care. The result is a hydrogel that is stronger, expands in the wound, lasts longer, kills bacteria, and creates a healthy environment for new cells to grow.

"The hydrogel continuously releases polylysine on the wound surface and continuously inhibits bacterial growth," Sun said. "We chose ε-polylysine because it can inhibit the growth of bacteria and solve the problem of antibiotic abuse, drug resistance, and does not affect the proliferation and development of cells. It can also conjugate with gelatin methacrylate, which plays an antimicrobial role and enhances the mechanical strength of the hydrogel."

In tests with E. Coli and S. Aureus, the bacterium that causes staph infection, the hydrogel damaged bacteria cell membranes and led to bacterial cell death. For healthy cells, the inclusion of platelet-rich blood plasma resulted in a release of growth factors and an increase of viable cells.

"The most interesting and exciting moment for me was when we mixed the polylysine and platelet-rich plasma solutions to see if they could form a hydrogel under UV irradiation," Sun said.

The experiment worked, and the hydrogel can be cured under a UV lamp for 30 seconds instead of curing by repeatedly freezing and thawing for up to 8 hours.

"As a clinician and researcher in dermatology, I have the obligation to provide better treatments for patients," Sun said. "Patients with chronically infected wounds combined with metabolic diseases, such as diabetes, malnutrition, and other diseases, as well as long-term bedridden patients will be helped by this solution."

Wound Treatment Hydrogel Infused With Amino Acid Kills Bacteria Naturally And Promotes Cell Growth

Hydrogels are popular for use in skin ailments and tissue engineering. These polymer-based biocompatible materials are useful for their abilities to retain water, deliver drugs into wounds, and biodegrade. However, they are complicated to manufacture and not very resilient to external forces like rubbing against clothing, sheets, or wound dressings. They are also not inherently able to battle bacterial infections, so they are often infused with antimicrobial drugs or metal ions, which can cause antibiotic resistance and negative effects on cell growth.

In a paper published in APL Materials, researchers created a hydrogel that is easier to synthesize, contains natural antibiotic properties, and promotes cell growth.

"A diabetic patient may have skin wounds that do not heal easily due to metabolic disease," author Jing Sun said. "The patient may try to treat the wounds with topical medicines such as erythromycin, and it may be effective at first, but over a long period of time, it may fail to relieve symptoms. This could be due to antibiotic resistance."

Using the common hydrogel Gel-MA, they added the amino acid polylysine and platelet-rich blood plasma to create properties that are well-suited to wound care. The result is a hydrogel that is stronger, expands in the wound, lasts longer, kills bacteria, and creates a healthy environment for new cells to grow.

"The hydrogel continuously releases polylysine on the wound surface and continuously inhibits bacterial growth," Sun said.

"We chose ε-polylysine because it can inhibit the growth of bacteria and solve the problem of antibiotic abuse, drug resistance, and does not affect the proliferation and development of cells. It can also conjugate with gelatin methacrylate, which plays an antimicrobial role and enhances the mechanical strength of the hydrogel."

In tests with E. Coli and S. Aureus, the bacterium that causes staph infection, the hydrogel damaged bacteria cell membranes and led to bacterial cell death. For healthy cells, the inclusion of platelet-rich blood plasma resulted in a release of growth factors and an increase of viable cells.

"The most interesting and exciting moment for me was when we mixed the polylysine and platelet-rich plasma solutions to see if they could form a hydrogel under UV irradiation," Sun said.

The experiment worked, and the hydrogel can be cured under a UV lamp for 30 seconds instead of curing by repeatedly freezing and thawing for up to eight hours.

"As a clinician and researcher in dermatology, I have the obligation to provide better treatments for patients," Sun said. "Patients with chronically infected wounds combined with metabolic diseases, such as diabetes, malnutrition, and other diseases, as well as long-term bedridden patients will be helped by this solution."

More information: Methacrylated Gelatin Hydrogel Conjugated with ε-Polylysine and Enriched with Platelet-Rich Plasma for Chronically Infected Wounds, APL Materials (2024). DOI: 10.1063/5.0200159

Citation: Wound treatment hydrogel infused with amino acid kills bacteria naturally and promotes cell growth (2024, April 2) retrieved 11 April 2024 from https://phys.Org/news/2024-04-wound-treatment-hydrogel-infused-amino.Html

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