Drug-loaded dressings for infection prevention and tissue regeneration in chronic wounds

Project ID: 2531ad1578

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Project Summary:

In 2017-2018, 3.8 million patients in the UK received NHS treatment for a wound. Chronic wounds, those which do not start to heal after 4-12 weeks despite treatment, are particularly difficult to treat and pose a high risk of infection. Novel treatments for chronic wounds which aid the healing process and protect patients from infection are urgently needed and would represent a significant breakthrough in healthcare.

In this project, you will develop novel dressings which can deliver antimicrobial and wound healing agents to chronic wounds. Specifically, we are interested in the incorporation of both growth factors and antimicrobial peptides into wound dressings, because of their potential to promote tissue repair and prevent infection. As part of the project, you will investigate the activity of naturally-occurring growth factors and antimicrobial peptides, and novel mimetics of these proteins. You will also conduct in vitro testing on all the dressings created in the project to determine their biocompatibility and wound healing properties.

What you will be doing:

As part of this project, candidates would receive training in a wide variety of techniques. These include: electrospinning, solid-phase peptide synthesis, polymer synthesis, analytical chemistry techniques (including HPLC and mass spectrometry), physicochemical characterisation techniques (XRD, DCS), antimicrobial activity assays, cell culture and cell-based assays.

The supervisory team:

This project is supervised by Dr Rachael Dickman and Dr Maryam Parhizkar. You will join a team of researchers from diverse backgrounds working in a multidisciplinary environment in the UCL School of Pharmacy.

Who we are looking for:

This project would suit candidates with a degree in chemistry, pharmacy, engineering or a related science, who are interested in working on a multidisciplinary project. Prior experience with the techniques used in the project is not essential, and training will be provided as needed.