Gel is more effective than traditional antibiotics due to their ability to penetrate the eardrum and reach the site of infection.
Scientists have developed a new gel treatment that Healed Ear Infections In animal tests with a single application. The discovery reports in an ACS Nano rekindles the hope of a faster and more secure alternative to antibiotics.
Ear infections, especially common in babies and children, are usually treated with oral antibiotics over several days. These treatments can cause side effects such as gastric disorders or fungal infections and infections may return or become resistant to antibiotics.
Now a team of researchers led by Rong Yang has created a drug gel that, when applied once to the outer ear, healed Chinchilla’s ear infections – animals whose ears resemble human ears in terms of treatment and treatment response – In just 24 hours.
The main innovation lies in gel ability to administer antibiotics through the eardrum, which traditionally acts as a barrier. Researchers encapsulated the antibiotic ciprofloxacin within negative liposomes and combined it with a temperature-sensitive hydrogel. Once applied, the gel solidifies, allowing the antibiotic to move constantly through the eardrum up to the middle earaiming directly the place of infection.
Surprisingly, the team found that negatively charged liposomes were more effective than positively charged, normally used in drug administration. This success is attributed to the immunity cells involved in the response to infection, which seem to actively help to attract negatively charged liposomes, explains the.
In controlled experiments, all chinchillas treated with the negatively charged liposomes gel were completely free of infections in 24 hours. Nor did they show signs of inflammation of the eardrum or recurrence of the infection after seven days. By comparison, only 25% of animals treated with a free antibiotic gel and 50% treated with a positive -charged liposomes gel showed a total recovery.
“This is a big step forward,” said Yang. “A single dose treatment can reduce the burden to families and help lock the increase in resistance to antibiotics, improving the adhesion of patients ”.
The team is now working on the transposition of their lab discoveries to clinical use, increasing the hope that this innovation can soon bring relief to millions of children worldwide.
