The Biology Of Staphylococcus Epidermidis Biofilm Formation On Silicone Implantable Medical Devices And The Role Of Implant Surface Antibiotic Technology In The Prevention Of Bacterial Biofilm In And Animal Model
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$113,322.00
Summary
Hospital acquired infections continue to rise with over 60% occuring in patients with medical implants. Infections are due to skin bacteria forming a microscopic slime, or biofilm, around the implant. Biofilm infection is only diagnosed after implant removal, responds poorly to antibiotics, and can cause implant failure, such as joint loosening & bone infection in joint replacements and breast deformity with silicone implants. This project uses an animal model to evaluate different surface treat ....Hospital acquired infections continue to rise with over 60% occuring in patients with medical implants. Infections are due to skin bacteria forming a microscopic slime, or biofilm, around the implant. Biofilm infection is only diagnosed after implant removal, responds poorly to antibiotics, and can cause implant failure, such as joint loosening & bone infection in joint replacements and breast deformity with silicone implants. This project uses an animal model to evaluate different surface treatments to prevent bacterial biofilm formation.Read moreRead less
Improving The Pre-hospital Treatment And Acute Management Of Burned Children
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$359,942.00
Summary
Children’s burns are physically and psychologically debilitating and are a huge burden for the children themselves, their families and the Australian health care system. My work will determine exactly what conditions are required to cause burns so that we can act to prevent them. I will also develop more effective first aid treatment and new treatments to improve burn wound healing.
This project aims to improve the acute treatment of children with burn injuries through developing more effective and novel treatments and understanding the conditions required for burn injuries to occur.
Development Of Monoclonal Antibody Therapy For Treating Wounds
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$573,354.00
Summary
Chronic wounds, diabetic ulcers, injuries in response to trauma, burns and scalds form a medical need which will only expand as the population ages and the diabetic epidemic grows. In our studies, we have shown that Flightless I (Flii), an actin-remodelling protein, is a negative regulator of wound healing. We are developing monoclonal antibodies as a new therapy for reducing Flii levels in wounds which leads to improved wound repair outcomes.
Development Of A Novel Drug For Chronic And Infected Wounds
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$482,362.00
Summary
Chronic wounds affect more than 9 million people worldwide and demand for wound care is increasing. The annual cost to healthcare systems in the US and Australia in treating such wounds is US$25 billion and AU$3 billion, respectively, and there is urgent need for more effective approaches.
Role Of Regulatory Genes In The Control Of Toxin Production In Clostridium Perfringens
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$495,710.00
Summary
This project investigates how the bacteria responsible for gas gangrene, an often fatal wound infection, control or regulate the expression of genes that encode toxins and other virulence factors. The overall objective is to develop a detailed understanding of the function and biological role of each element in these regulatory systems, thereby making a major contribution to our knowledge of how bacteria control the production of toxic products that are essential for the disease process.
Function Of The Flightless Protein In Wound Repair And Scar Formation In Skin
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$472,750.00
Summary
Scarring is the inevitable outcome of wound repair and can cover a spectrum of conditions, from normal fine lines to unsightly, restrictive and deforming scars. Each year in the world over 100 million patients acquire scars, primarily from surgical procedures. Many of these scars cause considerable problems. Over 4 million burn scars occur every year, 70% of them in children. Poor wound healing is a major clinical problem and can result in loss of movement and deformity. These are especially imp ....Scarring is the inevitable outcome of wound repair and can cover a spectrum of conditions, from normal fine lines to unsightly, restrictive and deforming scars. Each year in the world over 100 million patients acquire scars, primarily from surgical procedures. Many of these scars cause considerable problems. Over 4 million burn scars occur every year, 70% of them in children. Poor wound healing is a major clinical problem and can result in loss of movement and deformity. These are especially important considerations for children, where their growth places extra demands on healing wounds and grafts, necessitating regular surgical adjustment. Scarring is an area of largely unmet medical need and development of new treatment strategies would have significant impact on public health. Changes in cell adhesion, shape and movement are important processes in wound repair. A framework of filaments, much like guy-ropes that support a tent, help coordinate these events. Remodelling of these filaments, shortening or extending them and making new connections, allows cells to change shape and respond to stimuli. This is a crucial event in repairing wounds and the proteins that perform this are fundamentally important to wound repair. We have discovered a protein in skin, known as Flightless, that is involved in this filament remodelling process. The goal of this project is to determine what Flightless does in wound repair. By changing the amount of this protein and comparing its effect in non-scarring and scarring animal wound healing models we can gain insight into its role in wound healing and scar formation in humans. The development of new animal models in this research and the discovery of the role of Flightless in wound repair will provide exciting new opportunities to improve wound repair and reduce scarring, with significant impact on public health.Read moreRead less
Plasma Activated Hydrogel Therapy For Combatting Antimicrobial Resistance In Chronic Wounds
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$755,023.00
Summary
The aim is to advance wound care using electrical ionised gas discharge (plasma) to deliver antimicrobial and healing agents through tailored hydrogel dressings into wounds. The technology will be configured for real-world wounds and clinical settings and its antimicrobial delivery system will be optimised to eradicate all wound pathogens and prevent re-infection. The technology has potential to revolutionise chronic wound care and alleviate the growing problem of antimicrobial resistance.
First Aid For Burns: The Use Of Ice Water And Ice?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$209,668.00
Summary
Millions of people worldwide receive burn injuries every year and last year the Royal Children's Hospital in Brisbane alone treated more than 500 children with new burn injuries. Many of these children with burn injuries will heal burn wounds with unsightly scars and impaired skin function. Cooling burns as first aid has been used since ancient time and is proved to be the most effective way to reduce skin temperature, lessen pain, minimize the depth of injury, and ultimately improve wound heali ....Millions of people worldwide receive burn injuries every year and last year the Royal Children's Hospital in Brisbane alone treated more than 500 children with new burn injuries. Many of these children with burn injuries will heal burn wounds with unsightly scars and impaired skin function. Cooling burns as first aid has been used since ancient time and is proved to be the most effective way to reduce skin temperature, lessen pain, minimize the depth of injury, and ultimately improve wound healing outcome. However, despite the evidence that cooling burns using ice water <4 C may be beneficial to burns, current first aid recommend to only use cold water 8-25 C and the use of ice-ice water is strongly discouraged for fear of the potential to cause hypothermia and deepen the existing burn injury. In this application we will examine the effect of ice-ice water 2 C on wound healing outcome compared to 15 C water as first aid, in an in vivo model. The wound healing will be clinically assessed by experienced clinicians weekly for six weeks, and then will also be assessed histologically and mechanically at week six. We will also determine the optimal cooling temperature and duration for injured tissue in burn wounds to recover and the conduction of cold through skin. With the coming new knowledge we wish to design an optimal cooling burn treatment which will maximize the beneficial of cooling to the burns but avoid adverse effect of excessive cooling. The success of this project will advance our knowledge on first aid treatment or burn cooling treatment and also wound healing process. It will enable us to offer better first aid treatment which may lead to wound healing with less scars, otherwise can not achieved by other current available treatments. The better healing of burn wounds will significantly improve burn patients' lives, particularly children with burn injuries. It will also release the burden on much needed health funds.Read moreRead less