SBIR Phase I: New Chitin/Alginate Biocomposites by Homogeneous Processing in Ionic Liquids: Disruptive Technology for Wound Care Application

这个小企业技术转移（SBIR）第一阶段项目将利用正在申请专利的技术，允许直接溶解和重建天然生物聚合物，以制备几丁质/海藻酸盐复合纤维，并嵌入添加剂，用于伤口护理产品。该技术允许将海藻酸盐和几丁质（两者都具有加速伤口愈合，刺激细胞恢复和抗菌作用）与治疗性添加剂混合和纺丝，以生产复合纤维。这种独特的技术在纺丝过程中将添加剂嵌入纤维中，随着纤维吸收水分并变得不那么坚硬，添加剂会缓慢释放到伤口中，从而允许在较长一段时间内向伤口输送生理相关剂量的治疗剂。这些纤维将a)具有生物聚合物的固有特性，可以促进伤口愈合和细胞恢复，b)局部递送有益添加剂，c)在较长时间内缓慢释放添加剂。在第一阶段，目标是了解几丁质/海藻酸盐/添加剂组成与纺丝条件之间的关系，这些条件对机械和流变特性（强度、弹性、粘度）、吸水率和添加剂释放率的影响，这是糖尿病皮肤溃疡市场所需的模拟条件。该项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力将是通过开发一种独特的复合纤维，在表面和纤维内均匀分布添加剂，从而减少伤口护理治疗的持续时间（约40%）和成本（20-50%），从而不仅允许延长添加剂的释放，而且与目前的喷涂纤维相比，更少的敷料更换和更短的愈合时间。目标皮肤溃疡治疗市场预计到2013年将产生74亿美元的收入，这一增长是由于糖尿病人口的增加造成的。该市场的一个子集是最适用于生产纤维的湿敷料处理，2008年实现了3.154亿美元的收入，预计到2013年将增长到4.248亿美元。目前迫切需要能够提高愈合率的产品和含有创新纤维的新型敷料，这种敷料可以减少使用频率，使用寿命更长，并含有促进愈合的添加剂，从而降低患者护理成本。这些用于糖尿病溃疡市场的特种纤维的成功开发将为其他伤口护理和健康市场定制复合纤维的生产提供科学的见解。

This Small Business Technology Transfer (SBIR) Phase I project will utilize patent pending technology that allows direct dissolution and reconstitution of natural biopolymers to prepare chitin/alginate composite fibers with embedded additives for use in wound care products. The technology allows for solution blending and spinning of alginate and chitin (both known to speed wound healing, stimulate cell recovery, and be antibacterial) with therapeutic additives to produce composite fibers. This unique technology embeds the additives into the fibers during spinning, leading to slow release of the additives into the wound as the fiber absorbs water and becomes less rigid, and thus allowing the delivery of physiologically relevant doses of a therapeutic agent to the wound over an extended period of time. These fibers will a) possess the inherent properties of the biopolymers that increase wound healing and cell recovery, b) localize delivery of beneficial additives, and c) slowly release the additives over an extended period of time. In Phase I, the goals are to develop an understanding of the relationship between the relative chitin/alginate/additive composition and spinning conditions on mechanical and rheological properties (strength, elasticity, viscosity), water absorption, and additive release rates under simulated conditions as needed for the diabetic skin ulcer markets.The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will be the potential to reduce the duration (by ~40%) and cost (by 20-50%) of wound care treatment by developing a unique composite fiber with additives both on the surface and evenly distributed within the fiber, thereby allowing not only for extended release of the additives, but also less frequent dressing changes and decreased healing time compared to the current spray-coated fibers. The targeted skin ulcer treatment market is predicted to generate revenue of $7.4 billion by 2013, an increase caused by the rising diabetic population. A subset of this market where produced fibers are most applicable, the moist dressing treatment, achieved revenue of $315.4 million in 2008 and is expected to grow to $424.8 million by 2013. There is an urgent need for products that can improve healing rates and novel dressings incorporating innovative fibers that can be applied less frequency, last longer, and contain additives to promote healing, thus reducing patient care cost. The successful development of these specialty fibers for the diabetic ulcer market will provide scientific insight allowing for the customized production of composite fibers for other wound care and health markets.