Web for surgeons
ITMO has created a web-based material for wound healing after surgery
Irina Usyk, "Scientific Russia" (https://scientificrussia.ru /)
ITMO scientists have created a wound—healing material based on spider silk - it can be used as threads for suturing after operations. In addition, the development will help doctors to quickly track possible infection of the wound after surgical manipulations. The material is safe for the human body.
Article by Maltseva et al. Fluorescent Hybrid Material Based on Natural Spider Silk and Carbon Dots for Bioapplication is published in the journal ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering.
One of the most difficult stages in surgery is wound healing, because the outcome of the operation largely depends on it. Usually surgical sutures are used for this, which must be biocompatible and biodegradable. However, there is a risk of infection of the surgical site, which complicates the patient's recovery. In addition, it can be difficult to quickly track the appearance of pathogens after surgery.
Scientists of the ITMO chemical and biological cluster have found a way to overcome this problem. They have developed a hybrid material based on natural cobwebs, which allows not only to heal wounds at the same time, but also to quickly find pathogens that provoke various diseases. It will be possible to make subcutaneous surgical threads from it for suturing after operations. The method proposed by the researchers was tested on conditionally pathogenic bacteria such as E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Candida albicans fungus.
The material consists of two components: spider silk (web) — it acts as a framework for tissue regeneration — and carbon dots (a class of nanomaterials), which have the property of fluorescence (that is, they can glow when light is absorbed with a certain wavelength). With their help, it will be possible to monitor the healing process in real time after suturing wounds.
"We modified the spider's natural silk with fluorescent carbon dots. Their main property is the ability to glow when absorbing energy (light). Also, these nanoparticles can serve as a sensor for detecting pathogens, since when interacting with them, the glow decreases and the optical response is not observed. Usually, when we irradiate our material with blue light, it turns red. But after interacting with pathogens, the material stops glowing. In the same way, doctors can check how wounds are healing after surgery: if the material retains fluorescent abilities during the light test, everything is fine, if not, most likely, there is an inflammatory process in the tissues. Our material can be used as subcutaneous sutures," says Elizaveta Maltseva, the author of the study, a student of the chemical and biological cluster of ITMO University.
The researchers tested the effectiveness of the obtained material in in vitro tests for biocompatibility and cytotoxicity.
"Another advantage of our development is the ease of obtaining the material. To do this, we collected a web of burrowing spiders, cleaned it and then conducted a one-stage synthesis. The novelty of the project also lies in the fact that we used the web as a frame material and a carbon source for the formation of nanoparticles. In fact, we have grown carbon dots on the surface of the web. As a result, we have a durable hybrid material that has excellent mechanical properties compared to those already used in surgery," adds Elizaveta Maltseva.
At the next stage, the scientists plan to test the development for biodegradability and biocompatibility in vivo.
The study was supported by the Russian National Science Foundation Grant No. 22-23-00790.
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