Ole Miss Team Creates Biodegradable 3D-Printed Medicated Bandage for Chronic Wounds

A University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy team led by Michael Repka has developed a customizable, biodegradable 3D‑printed wound scaffold made from chitosan that delivers plant‑derived antimicrobials over time to help close persistent sores and ulcers, the researchers report in the European Journal of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics. The work names Repka, postdoctoral researcher Sateesh Vemula and doctoral candidate Nouf Alshammari as authors and ties the effort to laboratories in Shoemaker Hall in Oxford.

The scaffold is built from chitosan, a natural polymer derived from crustaceans, insects and fungi, and embeds plant‑based antimicrobial compounds that are released gradually to fight infection and encourage tissue repair, the research description says. The team designed the 3D‑printed patch to be customizable to fit varied wound shapes and to biodegrade, absorbing into tissue over time so the device does not require removal when used on internal wounds.

Repka highlighted the materials advantage of the approach in explaining why the team pursued plant‑derived actives rather than long courses of traditional antibiotics: “A lot of bandages are made with organic solvents, which actually hurt the wound‑healing process, especially when applied intimately on the wound,” stated Repka. “With the materials and technique we’re using, you don’t have organic solvents. We’re also not using traditional antibiotics over a long period of time, because that can often cause the bacteria to become resistant. That’s the advantage of using natural products.”

The researchers say the technology targets chronic wounds that can persist for months or years, explicitly including diabetic ulcers and pressure wounds as intended applications. In published summaries the team and university highlight potential clinical benefits: promoting wound closure and tissue repair, reducing local infection risk through sustained delivery of natural antibacterials, and avoiding secondary removal procedures because the scaffold biodegrades.

Evidence for the advance appears in the peer‑review journal, but the materials released with the publication do not include detailed experimental metrics such as release kinetics, degradation timeframes, sample sizes or specific in vitro or in vivo efficacy numbers. Before the scaffold can be used in patients, Repka and colleagues acknowledge additional testing and regulatory review are required; “The goal is translating this from research to patients,” Repka said, and the team has stated the device will need further testing and Food and Drug Administration review prior to clinical use.

Locally, the work was developed and photographed in Shoemaker Hall on the University of Mississippi campus in Oxford, with images credited to Thomas Graning of Ole Miss Digital Imaging Services. Repka, Vemula and Alshammari are continuing laboratory development with an explicit aim of moving the customizable, chitosan‑based scaffolds through the next stages of testing toward possible clinical translation.