The application of substrates composed of microporous materials and gold nanoparticles enables bacterial communication processes to be observed at very early stages, at which the number of bacteria is still very low to cause infections, according to research conducted by groups led by Luis Liz-Marzán at both CIC biomaGUNE (Donostia-San Sebastián) and the University of Vigo.
The work, published in the prestigious journal Nature Materials, has given rise to three plasmonic substrates with different features, offering advantages ranging from subcutaneous detection to high spatial resolution, and opens up the potential for diagnosis of bacterial infections in a general fashion. As Luis Liz-Marzán, Ikerbasque Research Professor and Scientific Director at CIC biomaGUNE, explains, “one such example could be the use of implants in areas where surgery has been performed and there is a risk of infection. Similar applications can be envisaged in dental implants, whereby the risk of infection could be pre-detected”.