Researchers at Queen’s
University Belfast have synthesised
a new hydrogel capable of destroying some of the most potent hospital superbugs.
“Superbugs” is the common name given to bacteria
that can resist the action of several antibiotics. “They can attach themselves
to medical instruments and implants by growing a biofilm. This is a jelly-like
coating which protects them from the action of antibiotics,”explained Dr Garry Laverty, a lecturer in Pharmaceutical Sciences at Queen’sUniversity.
Together with colleagues at Queen’s and Brandeis University (US), he has
designed a new type of hydrogel that can kill rapidly common superbugs such as
E. Coli, Staphylococcus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Dr Laverty pointed out the gel “is made from
peptides, the natural building blocks of proteins. These molecules are smaller
than the protective biofilm of the superbugs, and are inherently
anti-microbial.”
By breaking down the coating, they are able to kill
the bacteria selectively, leaving healthy cells unaffected, he said.
Four babies died from
pseudomonas at two Northern Ireland hospitals between December 2011
and January 2012.
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