IIT Mandi reinvents implant safety with revolutionary antibacterial coating

Mumbai: In a major breakthrough, the Indian Institute of Technology-Mandi in Himachal Pradesh has developed an innovative solution to a long-standing problem with medical implants – the risk of infections.

A team led by Dr Amit Jaiswal, Associate Professor, School of Biosciences and Bioengineering, IIT Mandi, has introduced an ingenious solution for implant-associated infections by utilizing innovative sugar-coated nanosheets as implant coatings.

Medical implants have long been a vital part of medical and reconstructive procedures, serving as effective treatments for a wide range of conditions. However, the formation of biofilms on these implants over time can lead to recurring infections and inflammation, ultimately causing tissue damage.

To address these persistent implant-associated infections, the research team has devised a biocompatible, non-leaching, and contact-based antibacterial coating for implants, utilizing quaternary pullulan functionalized MoS2 (MCP) glycosheets.

These cationic MCP glycosheets have been seamlessly applied to the surfaces of polydopamine-modified stainless steel and polyvinyl fluoride substrates through a straightforward electrostatic interaction process.

The developed MCP coating exhibited outstanding antibacterial efficacy, effectively eradicating more than 99.5 per cent of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.

“The developed coating is a unique combination of quaternized pullulan and MoS2 nanosheets that provides a potent defense against infections, while the easy and stable coating process ensures no leakage from the implant surfaces. Crucially, this solution has been proven to be entirely safe for human cells in vitro and in vivo in mice models, making it a promising advancement in the field of medical implants,” Dr Jaiswal said in a press statement issued here.

This pioneering approach not only offers exceptional protection against infections but also promises simplified and secure implementation, potentially transforming the safety and efficacy of implant technology.

The MCP coating has demonstrated its ability to prevent Staphylococcus aureus colonization on stainless steel implants in a mouse model of implant-associated infection. This breakthrough represents a simple, secure, and highly effective antibacterial coating that can revolutionize the prevention of implant-associated infections.

The researchers are in discussion with orthopedic hospitals to take it forward for clinical trials.

The results of this groundbreaking research have been published in the prestigious Journal of Materials Chemistry B in a paper co-authored by Dr Amit Jaiswal from IIT Mandi along with Dr V Badireenath Konkimalla from National Institute of Science Education and Research, Bhubaneshwar, along with research scholars, Dr Shounak Roy, Dr Prakash Haloi, Siva Lokesh, and veterinarian Saurabh Chawla.