IU Research Find Shocking Ways to Heal Wound Infections

Researchers at Indiana University (IU) School of Medicine’s Indiana Center for Regenerative Medicine and Engineering, have found a way to fight against bacterial infections by using a dressing that uses an electronic field to disrupt biofilm infection in wounds. Chandan Sen, Ph.D. and Sashwati Roy, Ph. D’s research finding were published in the April 1, 2019 issue of the journal, “Annals of Surgery.”

The IU researchers note that bacterial biofilms are thin, slimy films of bacteria that form on some wounds, including burns or post-surgical infections, as well as after a medical device, such as a catheter, is placed in the body. These bacteria generate their own electricity, using their own electric fields to communicate and form the biofilm, which makes them more hostile and difficult to treat.

According to estimates of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 65 percent of all infections are caused by bacteria with this biofilm phenotype, while the National Institutes of Health estimates that number is closer to 80 percent.

IU School of Medicine researchers are the first to study the practice of using an electric field-based dressing to treat biofilms rather than antibiotics. They found that dressings are not only successful in fighting the bacteria on its own, but when combined with other medications can become more effective. This discovery has the potential to create significant changes in the way physicians medically treat patients with bacterial infections which are resistant to antibiotics. The dressing can also help prevent new biofilm infections from forming in the future. The dressing electrochemically self-generates 1 volt of electricity upon contact with body fluids such as wound fluid or blood, which is not enough to hurt or electrocute the patient.

“This shows for the first time that bacterial biofilm can be disrupted by using an electroceutical dressing,” said Chandan Sen, PhD, director of the Indiana Center for Regenerative Medicine and Engineering and associate vice president of research for the IU School of Medicine Department of Surgery, in a May 17 statement announcing the publication of the IU research findings. “This has implications across surgery as biofilm presence can lead to many complications in successful surgical outcomes. Such textile may be considered for serving as hospital fabric – a major source of hospital acquired infections,” he says.

Marketing of the dressing for burn care was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The IU research team is now studying the device’s effectiveness in patients recovering from burns.

Indiana Center for Regenerative Medicine and Engineering, a multidisciplinary research center, focuses on the development of innovative technologies that regenerate cells and tissues affected by age, disease, damage or congenital effects, ultimately leading to best practices in wound care.  Located on the Indiana University School of Medicine – Indianapolis campus, over 30 scientists and staff work at the center with the goal of reducing number of amputations in the state of Indiana and elsewhere.