I admit this new invention may interest me way more than you.
After all, once I developed Klebsiella of the calf, and it transmogrified into necrotizing fasciitis, infectious wounds became more than an academic interest to me.
Then, when a mistake was made and my cast gouged a hole in my ankle, destroying my achilles tendon, I really worried about “infection creep”.
And, as I have seen my medical bills total up (to well into 7 figures), I am not surprised to learn that about $100 billion is spent each year just by Medicare on infection control. (Wound care involves some 5% of our health care budget.)
Drs. Ze Xiong, Sippinat Achavananthadith, and Sophie Lang at the National University of Singapore , along with 14 compatriots, published “A wireless and battery-free wound infection sensor based on DNA hydrogel” in Science Advances. The title makes clear the innovation.
Their new sensor, that they call WINDOW (Wireless Infection Detection On Wounds), relies on a hydrogel comprised of DNA. That sensor actually falls apart (degrades) as a result of excretions from infectious bacteria. That decay changes the dielectric properties of the hydrogen, and those altered properties are detectable. That is what activates a wireless signal to a nearby smartphone.
Why a wearable sensor? Because the device is flexible and can be incorporated into the wound dressings that are applied to the patients. But, the problem really was finding a material that would be biologically responsive, one that reacts when pathogens or infectious microbes are present. Oh, and it also shouldn’t respond to the plethora of healthy microbes that are normally part of the skin biome. To top it off, we need to be able to transmit the results wirelessly to a smartphone.
The team capitalized on the fact that opportunistic pathogens (think Staphylococcus aureus [aka Staph aureus], Streptococcus pyogenes [aka Strep], or Pseudomonas aeruginosa) exude deoxyribonuclease (DNase), which would is capable of degrading the DNA gel. That, plus the fact that the healthy microbes of the skin biome don’t exude tons of DNase.
The WINDOW device is a multi-layer device; the base layer is a polyimide strip, which forms the flexible base. Atop the polyimide strip is an electrode layer (SU-8). That electrode is pretty common, use by different electronic devices. The top layer is a light sensitive film, the DNA Hyrdrogel. The signal is transmitted via near-field communication- you know, like we employ when we tap our smartphone or credit card onto the receptacle to process a transaction at the grocery store or drug store.
In cell cultures, the device was able to detect Staph aureus once it reached 105 CFU (colony forming units, a conventional method of counting microbes in culture). And, that’s the lower end at which we can detect such infections in lab tests. It also worked when infected with swabs from diabetic foot wounds; it also did not react when controls (no foot wounds) were tested.
Finally, WINDOW was able to work in mice- detecting infections in 24 hours, long before there were any visible signs of infection. (The mice were wounded shallowly, but penetrating their skin layers. Half the wounds were deliberately infected with Staph aureus to provide infection.) The sensor manifested a 0.4 V change after 24 hours, which triggered the alarm in the nearby smartphone.
The two issues to be perfected are discerning how the device reacts in a multitude of skin biomes and infectious microbes- and having the hydrogel manifest a reasonable shelf-life. (Hydrogels dry out in a week or two.)
That sounds so interesting and hoping will give many people with severe infections quicker healing. BTW how are you doing with your leg and ankle? You sure have been through a lot especially with the added hole gouged in your ankle!
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I’m still not done with this escapade. But, I’m hoping this invention will work for others- so they won’t be in my boat.
I wrote you a book, and when I switched tabs to check a link, it all had disappeared. So I’m trying again.
I truly hope you can find healing for your wounds.
This technology is amazing. I am impressed at the creative minds that some people possess. To detect harmful and ignore healthy is also genius.
When my brother was in his early 20’s, he managed to get a small cut on his lower leg. He was serving as a jungle nurse on the Amazon, and the river water is terribly polluted, but they swam in it frequently. His small cut turned into an ulcerating, non-healing wound. He was transported back to Manaus where he received professional treatment. Their method of treating tropical ulcers was to pack them with sugar for debridement. That did not help him, and he ended up coming back to the US early to receive intensive treatment here. His leg was saved, I’m sure with strong antibiotics, but they didn’t have a lot of knowledge about tropical ulcers.
Our neighbor, a few years ago, got hit by a drunk driver and his lower leg became severely infected to where he was driving 1.5 hrs a day to Knoxville to receive IV antibiotics, eith the hopes of saving it. His infection was to the bone, and the doctors told him to prepare for amputation, because it kept creeping up.
With nothing to lose (except his leg), my husband and our family prayed with him, and my husband recommended that he talk to our friend, who helps to treat many people naturally. The shop was on his way, so he stopped in. He got prayed for again, and ended up with a big bottle of Allimed, which is a very concentrated liquid allicin, the antibiotic component in garlic. He began taking that along with the other abx. Within a pretty short period of time, his doctors all gathered around amazed at the healing of his leg. He was tremendously grateful, and did not lose his leg. I’m wondering if that would help you at all. If you’d like to give it a try, I can put you in touch with where you can obtain it. It’s shipped from the UK in refrigerated/frozen parcels, so not everyone has access, but our friend has a license to import it.
Also, for your reading pleasure, is my post from awhile back on charcoal in wound treatment. Sometimes simple remedies can be very effective.
https://www.ridgehavenhomestead.com/brown-recluse-spider-bite/
Blessings!
Since it’s Sabbath now, we will bring up your name in church today and pray for your leg.
Laurie
So, my infection was conquered using round the clock IV’s for several months. My continuing problem is that during the course of treatment, a cast was misshaped. It fell down, crashing into my ankle. It tore my achilles tendon, which then got infected. That infection is also healed- but the hole… that’s still there and until it closes I am at risk of infection- and unable to fully rehabilitate.
Thanks for the offer, though.
Roy, this device sounds amazing! I had to read up on Klebsiella b/c I hadn’t heard of it before. I am so sorry for this health journey you’ve been going through! Still, it’s amazing these researchers are developing detection solutions for active Klebsiella infections. Once detected, what clears such infections? Thanks for an eye-opening piece.
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There are plenty of drugs… The trick, Kebba, is getting to the microbes when they are incipient- and not overwhelming in number. Hence the utility of the early detection device.
I lost a friend in Florida to a wound that would not heal (COVID could also have been involved but there was a lot of confusion surrounding her last few days) back in July of 2020. This could prevent a lot of tragedies, also speaking as someone who had a brother in law who survived MRSA but it was quite a struggle.
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Good adjuncts to the discussion, Alana. Thanks for the share.