Hydrogel can help heal diabetes ulcers

Hydrogel invented by Rice University can help the body recover from diabetes-related injuries.

Laboratory of biological engineer Jeffrey Hartgerink has reported that tests on diabetic animal models suggest that injecting into a new hydrogel can help heal wounds better than an often used hydrogel used in clinics.

This study appeared in the American Chemical Society ACS Biomaterials.

Specifically, this type of Hydrogel is called Multidomain peptide (MDP), which is actually a series of amino acids - K2 (SL) 6K2, which has been shown to be useful for immunological treatment in a recent study.

This substance may be useful for people with diabetes who often suffer from long-term ulcers in the lower limbs that take longer to recover than normal wounds.

He said that the typical treatment for foot ulcers in diabetics has not changed much in the last century.

Nicole Carrejocho knows: "The current gold standard for removing wounds, eliminating necrotic tissue is washing wounds, bandages and patients are forced to reduce pressure on their legs for a long time. therapy and materials can be tried, but sometimes, everything fails, which can lead to a situation where you have to cut your feet. "

Researchers report that MDP hydrogel helps significantly in healing wounds in diabetic rodents. This treatment keeps the wound closed for 14 days, the formation of thick tissue, including the dense development of blood vessels and nerve cells, and the regeneration of hair follicles in the legs.

They compared the results with a control group treated with hydrogel, and found that the group needed twice as much treatment to achieve the same level of wound freezing. "Unlike our MDP hydrogel, Hydrogel is usually unable to control cell growth invasion," - Carrejo said.