Auburn professor develops staph-resistant bandage

Auburn University professor emeritus Dave Worley has developed a cost-effective, staph-resistant bandage.

Dangerous staph infections affect thousands recovering from a surgery or wound.

In a report by Charles Martin on the school website he explains that Worley of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry in the College of Sciences and Mathematics is applying his patented N-halamine chemistry to gauze bandages to kill any bacteria that might contact a wound.

"A 2-inch-square bandage would cost only 3-4 cents more than a regular bandage," Worley says in the article. "We tested it on Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. It kills them before they can infect the wound. Once a person becomes infected, the bacteria are hard to kill, especially if they are resistant to antibiotics."

Martin explains that Worley's process works by soaking the gauze in a solution of alcohol and an N-halamine compound containing chlorine. When the alcohol evaporates, the remaining solid, bacteria-killing compound adheres electrostatically to the bandage.

"You can shake the bandage, but the compound won't come out," said Worley, who says current bandages with silver also kill bacteria, but they are costly at up to $500 each. "We are at least as effective as silver at only a fraction of the cost."

The report says the technology also works for air filters, surgical masks or any other disposable fibrous structure.

Worley's proof-of-concept research was funded by Auburn University's LAUNCH program that helps faculty move research ideas closer to the marketplace. He conducted the research with Professor T.S. Huang of the Department of Poultry Science, College of Agriculture; Professor Emeritus Roy Broughton of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Samuel Ginn College of Engineering; and postdoctoral fellow Buket Demir of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, College of Sciences and Mathematics.

This story was originally published May 21, 2017 at 5:22 PM with the headline "Auburn professor develops staph-resistant bandage."