The researchers at the Swedish Chalmers Technology University detailed the development of a seemingly futuristic hydrogel that can be used as a vinaigrette to protect wounds. Hydrogel is described as very effective against all varieties of bacteria, including increasingly problematic antibiotic bacteria.
The hydrogel material has small proteins called antimicrobial peptides, which are naturally found in the immune system. These peptides have been the subject of various potential medical applications over the years, but there has been a consistent problem: corporal fluids break them quickly.
This newly published study details a nanostructured hydrogel that eliminates this problem, resulting in a material that is not toxic and can be used to directly apply antimicrobial peptides to the skin without degrading rapidly. Although the hydrogel can be used in various products, the researchers consider it primarily as a dressing of wound care.
Such a material can offer hospitals and the general public an alternative to antibiotics to protect and help treat various wound infections. The material can help solve the problem of antibiotic-resistant bacteria by treating it and reducing the antibiotic dependence that leads it.
According to the University, AMFERIA AB is seeking to put hydrogel material on the market, an effort that will require clinical studies, among others. The material is currently underway throughout Europe in multiple veterinary clinics and clinical studies.
