CAREER: Metabolite-Depleting Materials as an Anti-Biofilms Strategy

Non-Technical Abstract

It is often said that something is either part of the solution or part of the problem, but in the case of wound dressings, they are often both! While wound dressings are an essential technology for healing because they protect the healing wound and keep it moist, they also make an excellent place for bacteria to attach and grow. When bacteria group together and attach to a surface—whether it is the surface of a healing burn or the surface of a bandage—they can form a biofilm infection that becomes very difficult to treat with normal antibiotics.

This project supports the development of advanced materials that prevent biofilms, based on materials that are already used in the hospital setting. Bacteria that live in biofilms require energy and nutrients, and the larger the biofilm becomes, the more difficult it is for the surroundings to deliver these to the bacteria. By eliminating a key source of energy, a molecule called pyruvate, the biofilm is not able to grow and is much more easily treated.

By designing a material capable of destroying pyruvate, this research project limits the ability of biofilms to grow on wound dressings and makes infections easier to treat. Methods and results from this project are integrated into a graduate-level course at the University of Vermont on biomaterials design and testing. Graduate students also engage in community outreach by creating a design-driven materials activity for Linking Engineering to Life, an afterschool program for middle school-aged girls and non-binary youth.

These educational activities provide middle schoolers with exposure to advanced engineering ideas in a fun and creative way so they develop an early interest in engineering careers. Finally, a professional development course for University of Vermont undergraduate students who act as mentors for after-school activities strengthens engineering education, scientific communication, and mentorship in the Vermont career talent pool for many years to come.

Technical Abstract

This NSF project aims to create a new hydrogel material that combats bacterial biofilm infections. Biofilms, aggregates of bacteria attached to surfaces, are the primary cause of wound morbidity and mortality due to their extraordinary innate resistance to antimicrobial agents. Hydrogel wound dressings are critical in promoting the healing of wounds, yet they are susceptible to colonization by bacteria, which necessitates frequent dressing changes, significantly impedes healing, and can result in sepsis, amputation, or death.

This research enhances the wound dressing material alginate, a natural polymer made from brown seaweed, by incorporating enzymatic and non-enzymatic means of biofilm prevention. Pyruvate is hypothesized to be a main energy source for anaerobic Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria in biofilms, so depleting pyruvate helps prevent bacteria from creating the three-dimensional biofilm structure.

This project is ambitious in its approach to materials design by creating both enzymatic and biomimetic, non-enzymatic formulations of alginate hydrogels that sequester pyruvate and testing each for material properties and biofilm prevention. Research findings and the design-based methodology from this project are integrated into a graduate-level course at the University of Vermont on biomaterials design and testing.

Graduate students engage in community outreach by creating a design-driven materials activity for Linking Engineering to Life (LEL), an afterschool program for middle school-aged girls and non-binary youth. These educational activities provide middle schoolers with exposure to advanced engineering ideas in a fun and creative way to develop an early interest in engineering careers.

Finally, a professional development course for University of Vermont undergraduate students who act as mentors for LEL after-school activities strengthens engineering education, scientific communication, and mentorship in the Vermont STEM workforce for years to come.

This project is jointly funded by the Biomaterials Program and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.