Wound Healing

Postoperative adhesions are an “expected outcome” in abdominal surgeries. They are the leading cause of small-bowel obstruction in the western world, cause chronic debilitating pain, and lead to female infertility. With an expanding portion of the population (over 40%) undergoing some form of abdominal surgery before the age of 60, and adhesions resulting following over 90% of surgical procedures, adhesions remain a significant problem in the clinical arena. Existing methods to prevent surgical adhesions include solid barrier films, such as Seprafilm® (Genzyme). They are effective at separating neighboring tissues during healing, but are difficult to place and are limited in terms of application and efficacy. Luna is fulfilling this need by developing a two-component polymeric system known as TissuCoat™ that can be applied to internal tissues following surgery. TissuCoat is designed to protect internal tissues from adhesion formation, is easily applied, and provides the surgeon with a greater degree of control in product placement. In vivo studies have demonstrated statistically significant decrease in the incidence, extent, and severity of both primary and secondary adhesions that form with this treatment.

 

Luna is also aggressively pursuing the use of nanofibers for a variety of wound healing and regenerative medicine applications. Our ability to rapidly scale from benchtop needle-based electrospinning to pilot scale needle-free electrospinning provides us the ability to meet a number of critical needs in the medical community. Most recently, we have been developing advanced nanofiber-based dressings for ocular surface repair and controlled therapeutic delivery. 

Luna’s ocular dressings, under the BIOcular trade name include a dressing designed for corneal surface regeneration and a more robust nanofiber-reinforced hydrogel for stabilizing open globe injuries. In both of these nanofiber-reinforced hydrogels, the nanofibers provide flexibility and strength, while the hydrogel creates a biocompatible, water-tight seal that minimizes scar formation. Further, Luna has worked with the Wellman Center for Photomedicine to implement photochemical tissue bonding within its dressing, removing the need for suturing the dressing to the surface of the eye.

Finally, Luna is developing unique nanofiber-based wound dressings for controlled analgesic and therapeutic delivery. This includes dressings specifically designed for use in burn wounds, allowing antimicrobial behavior to be combined with controlled delivery of analgesics such as fentanyl to the wound site. These dressings are compatible with existing burn care regimens, and significantly reduce the fentanyl dosing required. We have also explored the use of liposomes loaded within the nanofiber dressings to provide transdermal drug delivery behavior and specific cell targeting. Below, liposomes have been designed that preferentially target nerve tissue, for delivery of analgesics to peripheral nerves in the treatment of peripheral neuropathy.