FUNCATH: Prevention of vascular catheter-related infections by the functionalization of catheters with thermically activated hydrogels with antimicrobial agents of broad spectrum
Show side menu
Starting date:
21/06/2019
End date:
20/06/2022
Programme:
Ruminant Production
Principal investigator:
Financing entities:
The project has four objectives:
- Produce multifunctional antimicrobial proteins based on different combinations of HDPs, with broad-spectrum activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.
- Design and synthetize a thermoresponsive hydrogel to coat the surfaces of catheters. The hydrogel contain the synthetized antimicrobial peptides specifically activated at body temperature, thus exposing the antimicrobial peptides to the hydrogel surface
- Evaluate the activity of the selected combinations antimicrobial proteins/hydrogel against some of the most relevant microorganisms involved in device-related infections with an in vitro biofilm-forming model, and identify the most active combination.
- Compare the ability to prevent infections related to central-line catheters coated with the selected most active antimicrobial proteins/hydrogel versus antibiotics, in a catheter-related infection model in rabbit.
