APL Materials: Antibacterial hydrogel is developed for treatment of non-healing wounds

Researchers from Jilin University (China) have created the first antibacterial hydrogel of its kind, which is intended for the treatment of non-healing wounds.

The respective research was published in the journal APL Materials.

Hydrogels are in great demand in medicine to help with skin diseases and in tissue engineering. But they are difficult to make, these materials are unstable to external influences, such as contact with clothes, sheets or bandages. By their nature, these substances cannot fight against bacterial infections, and therefore they need to be combined with antibiotics, which often slow down cell growth and prevent healing.

Specialists, however, have solved these problems by adding polylysine amino acid and blood plasma rich in platelets to the usual Gel-MA hydrogel. Polylysine acts as a natural antibiotic and suppresses microorganisms, and blood plasma accelerates tissue healing. Also, these additions made the material more stable.

According to the researchers, the Gel-MA, polylysine, and plasma composition turns into a gel in 30 seconds under a UV lamp, while standard hydrogels need to be cooled every now and then to maintain their flexibility.

The researchers expect that the material they created will help patients with diabetes and some other diseases whose skin wounds do not heal.

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