Smartwound-plasma

该项目解决了21世纪初的两大医疗保健和社会挑战：抗菌素耐药性（AMR）的上升以及发达国家和发展中国家慢性（不愈合）伤口日益流行的问题。吉姆·奥尼尔勋爵（Lord Jim O'Neil）最近的报告（2016年全球应对耐药感染）强调了我们现在面临的问题的规模，因为微生物对抗生素疗法产生了耐药性，而抗生素疗法在60多年来一直为我们提供了非常好的服务。在他的报告中，他提请注意2050年的世界，除非我们找到新的替代策略来有效地摧毁入侵的病原体，否则抗菌素耐药性将是一个“毁灭性的问题”。据估计，2016年抗生素耐药性每年导致“已经很大”的70万人死亡，而这一数字将增加到“极其令人不安”的每年1000万人，这实际上比目前每年死于癌症的人数还要多。奥尼尔还明确表示，如果我们不采取行动，除了“悲惨的人力成本”之外，到2050年，不解决抗生素耐药性上升的经济惩罚将增长到“巨大的”100万亿美元。虽然新的药物疗法无疑将在对抗抗菌素耐药性上升方面发挥作用，但工程解决方案也发挥着重要作用。在这个项目中，等离子体技术被用于（从环境空气中）产生过氧化氢（H2O2）等对杀死病原体非常有效的试剂。与抗生素不同，血浆可同时输送多种药物，因此迄今为止没有证据表明微生物会对血浆产生耐药性。慢性伤口的主要并发症之一是由机会性微生物引起的感染。伤口感染，就像其他类型的感染一样，都显示出抗菌素耐药性。因此，能够(i)发现感染的最初迹象和（ii）立即中和致病微生物的能力将为医疗保健专业人员提供一个重要的新武器。最后，将开发的组合技术可以应用于伤口感染以外的问题，例如包括导尿管在内的其他医疗设备的细菌定植。

This project addresses two major healthcare and societal challenges of the early 21st century: those of the rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and of the growing epidemic, in developed and developing nations of chronic (non-healing) wounds. The recent report of Lord Jim O'Neil (TACKLING DRUG-RESISTANT INFECTIONS GLOBALLY, 2016) highlights the scale of the problem we now face as micro-organisms develop resistance to antibiotic therapies that have served us extraordinarily well for now over sixty years. In his report he draws attention to a world in 2050 where AMR is a 'devastating problem' unless we find new alternative strategies to effectively destroying invading pathogens. Whilst in 2016 it was estimated that AMR gave rise to an "already large" 700,000 deaths every year, this number will increase to an "extremely disturbing" 10 million every year, which is in fact more than the number of people that currently die from cancer every year. O'Neil also makes clear, in addition to the 'tragic human costs' the economic penalty of not tackling the rise in in AMR would grow by 2050 to 'an enormous' 100 trillion USD if we do not take action.Whilst new drug therapies will no doubt play a role in combating the rise in AMR, there is a significant role for engineering solutions. In this project plasma technology is used to generate (from ambient air) agents such as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) that are extremely effective at killing pathogens. Because plasma delivers several agents at one time, unlike antibiotics there is no evidence to date that microbes can develop resistance to plasma.One of major complications of chronic wounds is infection, arising from opportunistic micro-organisms. Wound infections, like any other type of infection are showing AMR. Therefore the ability to (i) detect the first signs infection and (ii) neutralise the responsible organisms immediately would provide healthcare professionals a significant new weapon.Finally the combined technologies that will be developed can be applied to problems beyond wound infection, for example bacterial colonisation of other medical devices including urinary catheters.