New drug delivery system releases therapeutic cargo only when bacteria are present

A new responsive material developed by a team of Brown University researchers is able to release encapsulated cargo only when there is a presence of a certain type ofbacteria. The material could be used to make dressings that respond quickly to infections, but only on demand.

In the face of the global antibiotic resistance crisis, the material could help to fight infections while also addressing the problem of resistance.

An associate professor in Brown's School of Engineering led the development of a smart drug delivery system. Our hypothesis is that technologies like this, which reduce the amount of drug required for effective treatment, can also reduce both side effects and the potential for resistance.

There is a new material described in the journal. A range of small molecule and nanoparticles can be encapsulated using hydrogels. In wound dressings, they are often used. Drug delivery can be done using smart or responsive hydrogels. They can be made to respond to the environment in which they are located.

The new material is sensitive to -lactamases, a class of enzymes released by a variety of harmfulbacteria. The crosslinked network of the material degrades when -lactamases are present.

-lactam antibiotics are some of the most commonly prescribed antibiotics and are a major cause of antibiotic resistance. We used the defense mechanism against thebacteria.

In a series of laboratory experiments, Shukla and a team of Brown graduate students showed that the material is sensitive to -lactamases. The cargo was encapsulated. Eventually, the material will be used as a wound dressing that can respond to emerging infections.

There is a chance that this could be translated to the clinic. We're working towards that.

The authors of the study are from Brown.

More information: Dahlia Alkekhia et al, β-Lactamase-Responsive Hydrogel Drug Delivery Platform for Bacteria-Triggered Cargo Release, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces (2022). DOI: 10.1021/acsami.2c02614 Journal information: ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces