New plant-based wound dressing delivers antibiotics to fight infections

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%.

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 which have different properties. Two types of plant-based polymer are spun into a thin mesh of microscopic fibres. 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.

The two materials we used are very similar chemically; they differ by only two carbon atoms, but by spinning them into ultra-fine fibres, we can amplify these tiny molecular differences into dramatically different behaviours.

This allowed us to create a smart, two-sided dressing without any additional chemical modification, simultaneously guiding the antibiotic towards the wound while helping to prevent unnecessary loss of the drug away from the injury site and providing a barrier to protect the wound."

Dr. Xiang Ding, study's lead author

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.