[Representation]
Singapore: Researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have developed an innovative magnetic wound-healing gel that can speed up the healing of diabetic wounds, reduce recurrence rates, and thus can reduce the number of limb amputations.
The NUS researchers, who developed the gel, explained that each treatment involves the application of a bandage pre-loaded with a hydrogel containing skin cells for healing and magnetic particles.
To maximise therapeutic results, a wireless external magnetic device is used to activate skin cells and accelerate the wound healing process. The ideal duration of magnetic stimulation is about one to two hours.
Laboratory tests showed the treatment combined with magnetic stimulation healed diabetic wounds three times faster than current conventional approaches, according to the research published in the scientific journal Advanced Materials.
“Our technology addresses multiple critical factors associated with diabetic wounds, simultaneously managing elevated glucose levels in the wound area, activating dormant skin cells near the wound, restoring damaged blood vessels, and repairing the disrupted vascular network within the wound,” explained Assistant Professor Andy Tay, who led the team.
Currently, more than half a billion people globally are living with diabetes, and this number is expected to rise significantly. Chronic diabetic wounds such as foot ulcers have therefore become a major global healthcare challenge.
Every year, there are around 9.1 to 26.1 million cases of diabetic foot ulcer worldwide, and about 15 to 25 per cent of patients with diabetes will develop a diabetic foot ulcer during their lifetime, the researchers said.
“What our team has achieved is to identify a sweet spot by applying gentle mechanical stimulation. The result is that the remaining skin cells get to ‘work out’ to heal wounds, but not to the extent that it kills them,” said Tay.
The specially designed wound-healing gel is loaded with two types of FDA approved skin cells, keratinocytes (essential for skin repair) and fibroblast (for formation of connective tissue), and tiny magnetic particles.
When combined with a dynamic magnetic field generated by an external device, the mechanical stimulation of the gel encourages dermal fibroblasts to become more active, the researchers stated.
While the magnetic wound-healing gel has shown great promise in improving diabetic wound healing, it could also revolutionise the treatment of other complex wound types.
"The magneto-responsive hydrogel, combined with wireless magneto-induced dynamic mechanical stimulation, addresses fundamental challenges in wound healing, such as creating a conducive microenvironment and promoting tissue regeneration," said co-first author of the research paper Dr Shou Yufeng, Research Fellow from the Department of Biomedical Engineering at NUS College of Design and Engineering.
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