Activity of Hydrogen-Peroxide Generating Electrochemical Bandage Against Murine Wound Infections.

Biofilms formed by antibiotic-resistant bacteria in wound beds present unique challenges in terms of treating wound infections. In this work, the activity of a novel electrochemical bandage (e-bandage) composed of carbon fabric and controlled by a wearable potentiostat, designed to continuously deliver low amounts of hydrogen peroxide (HO) was evaluated against methicillin-resistant (MRSA), multidrug-resistant (MDR-PA) and mixed-species (MRSA and MDR-PA) wound infections. Wounds created on Swiss Webster mice were infected with the above-named bacteria and biofilms allowed to establish on wound beds for 3 days. e-Bandages, which electrochemically reduce dissolved oxygen to HO when polarized at -0.6 V, were placed atop the infected wound bed and polarized continuously for 48 hours. Polarized e-bandage treatment resulted in significant reductions (p <0.001) of both mono-species and mixed-species wound infections. After e-bandage treatment, electron microscopy showed degradation of bacterial cells, and histopathology showed no obvious alteration to the inflammatory host response. Blood biochemistries showed no abnormalities. Taken all together, results of this work suggest that the described HO-producing e-bandage can effectively reduce MRSA, MDR-PA and mixed-species wound biofilms, and should be further developed as a potential antibiotic-free strategy for treatment of wound infections.