Every year, 500,000 people seek medical attention for burns in the United States. Of these, roughly 17% of deaths are caused by infections. The purpose of this experiment was to design a unique method to combat nosocomial infections by creating a hydrogel infused with hyaluronic acid, Vitamin E, silver nanoparticles, and a bacteriophage cocktail. Unlike traditional hydrogels which only aid in the protection and healing of wounds, this hydrogel promoted wound healing by increasing cell proliferation while simultaneously disrupting biofilm formation and breaking down common sources of bacterial infection: Staphylococcus aureusand Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Bacteriophages that target Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were isolated from sterile sewage samples obtained from the Broward County Treatment plant and were characterized to differentiate them using various methods. A matrix of silver nanoparticles and phages was created to determine a MIC on S. aureus and P. aeruginosa using an OD600 assay. Cell viability in the presence of silver nanoparticles was assayed in vitro on Human Dermal Fibroblasts (HDF). Cell proliferation in the same system was measured in the presence of Vitamin E, Hyaluronic Acid, and the silver nanoparticles using a wound healing scratch assay.
The results supported the hypothesis that cell proliferation would increase in the presence of hyaluronic acid and Vitamin E. Simultaneously, the bacteriophage cocktail and colloidal silver decreased biofilm growth in both Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa w hile not affecting the viability of the cells. This finding is important because it offers a cost effective, non-invasive approach to improving wound healing without the use of antibiotics.
Improving Wound Healing by Breaking Down Biofilm Formation and Reducing Nosocomial Infections 