Photodynamic Decontamination and Biostimulation System

In response to DARPA's request for a new technology that provides: 1) rapid detection and elimination of pathogens in contaminated traumatic skin wounds (including thermal, radiation and chemical burns) and 2) accelerates wound healing in a sterileenvironment using light emitting diodes (LED), Physical Optics Corporation (POC) proposes to develop a unique Photodynamic Decontamination and Biostimulation (PDB) system. The system is based on the topical application of lipid-coated microbubbles (LCM)enclosing Methylene blue as a photosensitizer and illumination of the wound with two NASA light-emitting diode (LED) arrays. One of the LED arrays is used for photosensitizer excitation and generation of antimicrobial reactive chemical species. The secondarray will produce a powerful biostimulating effect on wound healing. LCM formulation of the Methylene blue allows eradicating both extra-and intra-cellular pathogens. Decoloration of a small portion of the dye (released from the LCM during lightirradiation) will indicate the presence of a pathogen and/or an active inflammation. The PDB system integrates three major components: an LCM generating subsystem, an LED array subsystem, and a transparent wound bandage. In Phase I, POC will demonstratethe PDB system's ability to eliminate pathogens and stimulate wound healing within vitro experiments. The successful completion of this project will result in a reliable, portable, and cost-efficient device using a novel technology for open wounddecontamination and treatment, which's also suitable for a wide range of commercial applications, notably treatment of serious burns, crush injuries, traumatic ischemic wounds, radiation tissue damage, compromised skin grafts, and hospital infection.