What do you do when you accidentally cut yourself with a knife? Chances are, you are applying adhesive tape to the wound site, which protects the affected area from dirt and bacteria, and also tightens the edges of the wound and accelerates its healing. In addition to ordinary adhesive plasters, there are medicinal ones that are soaked in nicotine and help to quit smoking, as well as pepper patches to eliminate pain. So why don't scientists soak these adhesive tapes with substances that speed up tissue healing? American scientists from Harvard University have done this and now they claim that even serious wounds can be treated with such a patch.
To create a new type of plasters, scientists were inspired by children who are in the womb in an embryonic form. It is known that wounds on their bodies heal as soon as possible, and in their place no traces remain at all. The skin of an adult has the same property, but wound healing is much slower. But why?
Skin restoration
The fact is that when damage is received, embryonic tissues begin to actively produce protein fibers, which rapidly narrow, thereby compressing the skin around the wound. In 2003, scientists discovered that the TGF-Beta-3 proteins, which are involved in both embryonic development and tissue formation, play the largest role in this process.
Human embryo.
In the same year, an experiment was conducted in which one group of people with small wounds was applied a gel without adding any medication, and another - a medicine containing the aforementioned protein. As expected, wounds treated with the second agent healed much faster.
Promotional video:
Plaster for wounds
The TGF-Beta-3 protein is not included in the composition of the new type of patch - this is probably due to the fact that a high content of this protein can provoke the development of Alzheimer's disease, due to which memory is greatly impaired in people. However, despite the lack of protein, it still tightens the skin faster and speeds up healing. According to scientists, the adhesive tape they created consists of gels that are activated by the heat of the human body and adhere to the skin more tightly than conventional plasters. It also contains tiny particles of silver that kill germs.
Schematic representation of wound closure.
The effectiveness of the patches has been proven in mice and pigs - the wounds on their bodies did heal faster than with conventional patches. It was also noted that the new patch does not cause inflammation, which indicates its safety for health. To officially recognize the effectiveness of the new dressings, all that remains is to test them on humans, but for this, scientists need to get permission from the regulatory authorities.
Ulcer treatment
Scientists believe that the adhesive plaster they created can heal not only small cuts, but also serious wounds. For example, it can be used to treat ulcers associated with diabetes mellitus and pressure ulcers in patients with prolonged bed rest.
All this may be quite real, but still, before using a new material in hospitals, it must be carefully tested in humans. At a minimum, scientists have yet to figure out how an adhesive plaster behaves at low temperatures.
Ramis Ganiev