Project Overview: Lipid-based nanoparticles (LNPs) carrying either siRNA or mRNA are embedded within advanced hydrogels and applied directly to wounds. This innovative approach aims to use gene therapeutics to restore the body's natural healing processes. Drawn with BioRender.

Aging and illness often impair the body's natural ability to heal wounds by disrupting the balance of genes essential for the healing process. Some genes become overactive, contributing to inflammation and other issues, while others become underactive, failing to support crucial repair functions. Our project aims to restore the normal balance of these genes through the targeted application of RNA therapeutics, specifically, by silencing overactive genes with siRNA and supplementing underactive genes with mRNA. The restored healthy balance will provide a means to turn chronic, non-healing wounds into healing ones, thus mitigating the risk of infection, amputation, and other serious complications.

To achieve this, we aim to develop new advanced lipid-based nanocarriers specifically tailored to deliver therapeutic RNA efficiently and safely to the wound sites. These nanocarriers will be designed to be embedded in the advanced multifunctional wound dressings being developed as part of the Wound Booster initiative. They will be engineered to transport the therapeutic RNA through the complex environment of a chronic wound, releasing it where it is most needed. This targeted delivery system will maximize the efficacy and minimize potential side effects. This makes it a safer and more effective treatment option for patients, potentially revolutionizing the management of chronic wounds.