MSGID: 1:317/3 6455d7e9   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Smart surgical implant coatings provide early failure warning while   
   preventing infection    
      
     Date:   
         May 5, 2023   
     Source:   
         University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, News Bureau   
     Summary:   
         Newly developed 'smart' coatings for surgical orthopedic implants   
         can monitor strain on the devices to provide early warning   
         of implant failures while killing infection-causing bacteria,   
         researchers report.   
      
         The coatings integrate flexible sensors with a nanostructured   
         antibacterial surface inspired by the wings of dragonflies and   
         cicadas.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   Newly developed "smart" coatings for surgical orthopedic implants   
   can monitor strain on the devices to provide early warning of implant   
   failures while killing infection-causing bacteria, University of Illinois   
   Urbana-Champaign researchers report. The coatings integrate flexible   
   sensors with a nanostructured antibacterial surface inspired by the   
   wings of dragonflies and cicadas.   
      
   In a new study in the journal Science Advances, a multidisciplinary team   
   of researchers found the coatings prevented infection in live mice and   
   mapped strain in commercial implants applied to sheep spines to warn of   
   various implant or healing failures.   
      
   "This is a combination of bio-inspired nanomaterial design with flexible   
   electronics to battle a complicated, long-term biomedical problem,"   
   said study leader Qing Cao, a U. of I. professor of materials science   
   and engineering.   
      
   Both infection and device failure are major problems with orthopedic   
   implants, each affecting up to 10% of patients, Cao said. Several   
   approaches to fighting infection have been attempted, but all have severe   
   limitations, he said: Biofilms can still form on water-repelling surfaces,   
   and coatings laden with antibiotic chemicals or drugs run out in a span   
   of months and have toxic effects on the surrounding tissue with little   
   efficacy against drug-resistant strains of bacterial pathogens.   
      
   Taking inspiration from the naturally antibacterial wings of cicadas   
   and dragonflies, the Illinois team created a thin foil patterned with   
   nanoscale pillars like those found on the insects' wings. When a bacterial   
   cell attempts to bind to the foil, the pillars puncture the cell wall,   
   killing it.   
      
   "Using a mechanical approach to killing bacteria allowed us to bypass   
   a lot of the problems with chemical approaches, while still giving us   
   the flexibility needed to apply the coating to implant surfaces," said   
   pathobiology professor Gee Lau, a coauthor of the study.   
      
   On the back side of the nanostructured foil, where it contacts the implant   
   device, the researchers integrated arrays of highly sensitive, flexible   
   electronic sensors to monitor strain. This could help physicians watch   
   the healing progress of individual patients, guide their rehabilitation   
   to shorten the recovery time and minimize risks, and repair or replace   
   devices before they hit the point of failure, the researchers said.   
      
   The engineering group then teamed up with veterinary clinical medicine   
   professor Annette McCoy to test their prototype devices. They implanted   
   the foils in live mice and monitored them for any sign of infection,   
   even when bacteria were introduced. They also applied the coatings   
   to commercially available spinal implants and monitored strain to   
   the implants in sheep spines under normal load for device failure   
   diagnosis. The coatings performed both functions well.   
      
   The prototype electronics required wires, but the researchers next plan   
   to develop wireless power and data communications interfaces for their   
   coatings, a crucial step for clinical application, Cao said. They also   
   are working to develop large-scale production of the nanopillar-textured   
   bacteria-killing foil.   
      
   "These types of antibacterial coatings have a lot of potential   
   applications, and since ours uses a mechanical mechanism, it has   
   potential for places where chemicals or heavy metal ions -- as are used in   
   commercial antimicrobial coatings now -- would be detrimental," Cao said.   
      
   The National Science Foundation and the U.S. Congressionally Directed   
   Medical Research Programs supported this work.   
      
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Health_&_Medicine   
                   # Medical_Devices # Infectious_Diseases #   
                   Wounds_and_Healing # Disability   
             o Plants_&_Animals   
                   # Bacteria # Mice # Microbes_and_More #   
                   Biotechnology_and_Bioengineering   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Salmonella_infection o Bacteria o Earthquake o   
             Malignant_melanoma o Natural_killer_cell o Robotic_surgery o   
             Tapeworm o Global_spread_of_H5N1_in_2006   
      
   ==========================================================================   
   Story Source: Materials provided by   
   University_of_Illinois_at_Urbana-Champaign,_News_Bureau.   
      
   Original written by Liz Ahlberg Touchstone. Note: Content may be edited   
   for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Yi Zhang, Jinsong Cui, Kuan-Yu Chen, Shanny Hsuan Kuo, Jaishree   
      Sharma,   
         Rimsha Bhatta, Zheng Liu, Austin Ellis-Mohr, Fufei An, Jiahui Li,   
         Qian Chen, Kari D. Foss, Hua Wang, Yumeng Li, Annette M. McCoy,   
         Gee W. Lau, Qing Cao. A smart coating with integrated physical   
         antimicrobial and strain-mapping functionalities for orthopedic   
         implants. Science Advances, 2023; 9 (18) DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adg7397   
   ==========================================================================   
      
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230505165444.htm   
      
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