What if you could wield a laser sword against microscopic invaders, not in a galaxy far, far away, but in your own body?
Scientists have developed a technique using laser-heated gold nanoparticles to visualize and destroy bacterial biofilms. This approach, tested on rodent teeth and skin wounds, may someday potentially replace antibiotics and treat drug-resistant superbugs.
New Therapy Fights Bacteria Without Antibiotics
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and Stanford University have developed a novel technique using sugar-coated gold nanoparticles. When heated by near-infrared lasers, these nanoparticles can both show and destroy biofilms in infected teeth and skin wounds of rats and mice.
Robin Seaton Jefferson
Author
Robin Seaton Jefferson is a St. Louis-based journalist covering advances in aging science and medical technology. She has written for Forbes, Elsevier Science, and other health media. She was one of 20 journalists selected nationwide for the National Press Foundation’s “Understanding the Latest on Dementia Issues” in Washington, D.C.
