Combating Bacterial Infections Through Biomimetic or Bioinspired Materials Design and Enabling Technologies

Bacterial infections have become one of the most challenging medical problems in the world. The development of bacterial strains, which are resistant to traditional therapies based on antibiotics, has led to the need for biomedical research to find new strategies for combating such infections. This is needed to ensure the future success of major surgery and interventional therapies, temporarily applied invasive medical devices or mid- and long-term implants. Also, the bacterial strains with the ability to colonize the surfaces and form biofilm represent a serious problem in terms of the morbidity of the patients and costs to national health systems. Once firmly established, a biofilm can be very difficult to eradicate because the bacteria embedded in a self-produced extracellular polymeric substance exhibit increased resistance to commonly used antimicrobial agents and disinfectants. The development of new molecules with therapeutic effect is a time-consuming process and involves paramount economical and manpower efforts. Hence, alternative strategies based on new materials design and bioinspired technologies, exploiting a biomimetic barrier to bacterial colonization and preventing subsequent infection, can open the way to viable and readily available solutions. Therefore, there is a practical need for the development of non-toxic bacteria-resistant materials. More in-depth comprehension of the biological mechanisms underlying bacterial colonization of acute and chronic wounds and in the presence of implant or prosthesis materials; biofilm formation; drug resistance; bacteriostatic and bactericidal effects and the development of adequate in vitro procedures to test these processes are key elements. These can contribute proactively to the research efforts in combating bacterial infection with biomimetic strategies.

In this arena, this Research Topic intends to collect breakthrough contributions from leading scientists in areas such as
- Biomimetic polymers and hybrids with antibacterial effect
- Bioactive ceramics and glasses preventing bacterial growth
- Design of unfavorable surface topographies for bacterial colonization
- 2D and 3D in vitro testing of antibacterial activity and eukaryotic biocompatibility

Contributions could, not exclusively, focus on strategies devoted to combat induced wound and foreign implant associated infection.