The dressing is two sided to protect the wound and deliver antibiotics, and is made from plant-derived materials.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of University of Bath
Scientific Frontline: Extended "At a Glance" Summary: Plant-Based Antimicrobial Wound Dressing
The Core Concept: A novel, two-sided wound dressing engineered from sustainable furan-based plant polymers, designed to deliver antibiotics directly to injuries during the critical early stages of infection.
Key Distinction/Mechanism: Unlike traditional petroleum-based dressings, this material utilizes two chemically similar plant-based polymers spun into ultra-fine fibers. The wound-facing layer rapidly releases the antibiotic tetracycline, while the water-repellent outer layer prevents moisture loss and drug leakage, reducing biofilm formation by over 90% within four hours.
Major Frameworks/Components:
- Furan-based polymers: Plant-derived, plastic-like materials utilized as a sustainable alternative to petrochemical plastics.
- Microscopic fiber mesh: Spun polymer fibers that amplify tiny molecular differences to create distinct physical properties on each side of the dressing without additional chemical modification.
- Targeted antibiotic delivery: The specific incorporation of tetracycline into the inner matrix to intervene before bacterial colonization occurs.
- Biofilm disruption: Early prophylactic action against protective slime layers formed by common wound-infecting bacteria, specifically Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Branch of Science: Materials Science, Biomaterials Science, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, and Microbiology.
Future Application: The adaptation of plant-based packaging materials into advanced clinical health care technologies, offering scalable and sustainable infection control for severe wounds.
Why It Matters: By neutralizing bacteria before protective biofilms can form, this biodegradable dressing offers a highly effective, non-toxic method to accelerate healing, prevent chronic infections, and reduce the immense financial burden on global health care systems.
A new dressing made from plant-based materials can deliver antibiotics directly to wounds during critical early stages of infection, according to researchers from the University of Bath. The study, published in Bioactive Materials, is the first to use this family of sustainable furan-based polymers, previously explored for sustainable plastics and packaging, for infection-fighting wound dressings.
Wound infections are a major challenge for healthcare systems worldwide and are estimated to cost the NHS alone billions every year. Bacteria can enter a wound and begin forming a protective, slimy layer known as a biofilm within hours, slowing healing and making infections much harder to treat.
The team from the Department of Chemical Engineering and the Department of Chemistry has created a novel, two-sided dressing from sustainable polymers, a plastic-like material sourced from plants, not petrochemicals. One side of the dressing rapidly releases antibiotics into the wound, while the other acts as a barrier to maintain the protected healing environment.
The novel dressing intervenes in the early window before the biofilm grows, when treatment is most effective. It quickly releases the antibiotic and reaches effective concentrations within four hours, reducing biofilm formation by over 90 percent.
A Two-Sided Material
Unlike many advanced wound dressings that rely on petroleum-based plastics or additional chemical treatments, this dressing is made simply from two plant-based layers that have different properties. Two types of plant-based polymers are spun into a thin mesh of microscopic fibers. On the wound-facing side, the commonly used antibiotic tetracycline is incorporated. The outer side of the dressing repels water to moderate moisture loss and promote healing.
Dr. Xiang Ding, the study’s lead author, said, “The two materials we used are very similar chemically; they differ by only two carbon atoms, but by spinning them into ultrafine fibers, we can amplify these tiny molecular differences into dramatically different behaviors.
“This allowed us to create a smart, two-sided dressing without any additional chemical modification, simultaneously guiding the antibiotic toward the wound while helping to prevent unnecessary loss of the drug away from the injury site and providing a barrier to protect the wound.”
Fighting Infection-Causing Bacteria
The multidisciplinary team from Bath, together with collaborators from the University of Bristol and Newcastle University, tested the dressing against two common wound-infecting bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Results from lab tests using model wounds showed a significant reduction in bacterial growth and biofilm formation after dressing application. The material is also compatible with human skin cells, showing no signs of toxicity in laboratory testing.
The study demonstrates how plant-based materials previously developed for sustainable plastics and packaging applications could be adapted for advanced healthcare technologies. While further development and testing will be needed before any clinical use, the findings highlight the potential for more sustainable wound care technologies without compromising on performance.
Acknowledgments: This work was supported with significant input from colleagues in the university’s Central Research Facility (CRF). In particular, Diana Lednitzky and Dr. Philip Fletcher provided technical guidance and assistance throughout the project, while Michael Zachariadis, instrument specialist in the CRF and a co-author on the paper, made substantial contributions to the confocal research underpinning the study. Their expertise and support were instrumental to the success of the work, alongside the contributions of academic colleagues across the university, all of whom are recognized as authors on the publication.
Published in journal: Bioactive Materials
Title: Janus electrospun nanofiber membranes from bio-based furan polyamides for antibacterial wound care
Authors: Xiang Ding, Naing Tun Thet, Carmelo Herdes, Edward Chaloner, Mikal Negasi, Ioanna Kontou, Maisem Laabei, Ute Jungwirth, Dominic Savage, Muhammad Kamran, Michael Zachariadis, Toby Jenkins, Matthew G. Davidson, and Hannah S. Leese
Source/Credit: University of Bath
Edited by: Scientific Frontline
Reference Number: ms071526_01
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