HOCl-producing electrochemical bandage for treating <i>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</i> -infected murine wounds

Abstract

The growing threat of antibiotic-resistant bacterial pathogens necessitates the development of alternative antimicrobial approaches. This is particularly true for chronic wound infections, which commonly harbor biofilm-dwelling bacteria. A novel electrochemical bandage (e-bandage) delivering low-levels of hypochlorous acid (HOCl) was evaluated against <i>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</i> murine wound biofilms. 5 mm skin wounds were created on the dorsum of mice and infected with 10⁶ colony-forming units (CFU) of <i>P. aeruginosa</i>. Biofilms were formed over 2 days, after which e-bandages were placed on the wound beds and covered with Tegaderm. Mice were administered Tegaderm-only (control), non-polarized e-bandage (no HOCl production), or polarized e-bandage (using an HOCl-producing potentiostat), with or without systemic amikacin. Purulence and wound areas were measured before and after treatment. After 48 hours, wounds were harvested for bacterial quantification. Forty-eight hours of polarized e-bandage treatment resulted in mean biofilm reductions of 1.4 log₁₀ CFUs/g (<i>P</i> = 0.0107) vs non-polarized controls and 2.2 log₁₀ CFU/g (<i>P</i> = 0.004) vs Tegaderm-only controls. Amikacin improved CFU reduction in Tegaderm-only (<i>P</i> = 0.0045) and non-polarized control groups (<i>P</i> = 0.0312) but not in the polarized group (<i>P</i> = 0.3876). Compared to the Tegaderm-only group, there was less purulence in the polarized group (<i>P</i> = 0.009). Wound closure was neither impeded nor improved by either polarized or non-polarized e-bandage treatment. Concurrent amikacin did not impact wound closure or purulence. In conclusion, an HOCl-producing e-bandage reduced <i>P. aeruginosa</i> in wound biofilms with no impairment in wound healing, representing a promising antibiotic-free approach for addressing wound infection.