CoSpunTex: Seamless dressing made of bioactive, co-axial wet-spun fibers for treating diabetic foot ulcers
Scientific Area: Nanotechnologies
Funding: PT: 49,964 EUR | UT Austin 100,000 USD
PIs: PT — Helena Felgueiras (University of Minho) | UT — Jonathan Chen (University of Texas at Austin)
Start and End Dates: 2026-01-01 – 2026-12-31
Summary: Diabetic foot ulcers are chronic, non-healing wounds characterized by persistent inflammation, infection, and poor vascularization. Current dressings are largely passive and fail to address these multiple biological barriers simultaneously. There is a technical gap in creating an integrated solution that can actively respond to the complex wound environment. This project addresses that gap by developing a multifunctional, biodegradable dressing capable of releasing therapeutic agents in response to local stimuli (e.g., pH, enzymes), aiming to reduce inflammation, combat infection, and promote tissue regeneration, all within a single, seamless system. The project proposes a seamless dressing composed of co-axial microfluidic-spun fibers that integrate multiple therapeutic agents within a single structure. The outer fiber layer contains carbon nanofibers and chitosan nanoparticles loaded with the CW49 peptide, providing antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory action. The inner core includes sodium alginate and hyaluronic acid for moisture regulation and tissue regeneration. This design enables a stimuli-responsive release of bioactive compounds triggered by the wound’s environment (e.g., pH, enzymes), offering a multifunctional, biodegradable solution that actively promotes healing in complex diabetic foot ulcers. This research introduces a “all-in-one” wound dressing that actively responds to the complex environment of diabetic foot ulcers, combining antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and regenerative actions in a single, biodegradable product. It has the potential to reduce treatment costs, lower amputation rates, and improve patients’ quality of life. For the healthcare market, it offers a scalable, high-impact solution for chronic wound care. Scientifically, it opens new research avenues in stimuli-responsive biomaterials, fiber-based drug delivery systems, and advanced medical textiles, with strong potential for translation into other biomedical and therapeutic contexts.
Leading Institutes:
The University of Minho brings expertise in bioactive fiber development, textile engineering, semaless technology and biomedical applications.
The University of Texas at Austin contributes advanced knowledge in fiber spinning technologies, yarn processing, and wet-spinning technique.
Together, the partners integrate complementary skills to engineer innovative, multifunctional dressings capable of addressing complex challenges in diabetic wound care.
