AsianScientist (Jul. 21, 2025) – Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is giving rise to superbugs, tiny organisms that make treating everyday infections more difficult, and sometimes impossible. Experts predict that by 2050, AMR could be responsible for up to 40 million deaths every year. The economic impact could be staggering with healthcare costs reaching around $1.6 trillion annually. Shockingly, over 70 percent of infections caught in hospitals are now linked to these hardy bacteria.
The Southeast Asia region is especially hard-hit. Developing new antibiotics isn’t getting any easier, which leaves doctors with fewer options to fight resistant infections. To make matters worse, superbugs like Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) do not just resist existing antibiotics, they also create a thick biofilm that shields them from treatment efforts.
To tackle this problem, scientists at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), in collaboration with researchers from the University of Illinois, have come up with a novel approach.
They’ve designed a platform that utilizes tiny bubbles, known as microbubbles, to deliver gene-targeting nanoparticles. These nanoparticles are designed to break down biofilms, offering a promising new way to treat stubborn infections that resist regular antibiotics.
The researchers developed short strands of DNA aimed at interfering with three critical MRSA genes – one for biofilm formation (icaA), one for cell division (ftsZ), and one for antibiotic resistance (mecA). They packed these DNA sequences into specially made nanoparticles (BTN) that can penetrate bacteria. To get through the tough biofilm barrier, they also used microbubbles (MB), which temporarily make bacterial membranes more permeable.
The treatment works in two steps. First, the microbubbles create pressure changes that open up the biofilm. Next, the nanoparticles pass through these openings and deliver their DNA directly into the bacteria, which causes the bacteria to turn off the genes that help them grow, form biofilms, or resist antibiotics.
Experiments on infected pig skin and mouse wounds showed that this combined BTN-MB treatment considerably decreased biofilm thickness, reduced bacterial counts, and eased inflammation.
These promising results point toward a new way to fight resistant MRSA infections.
“This study presents a new therapeutic solution that combines nanotechnology, gene suppression, and physical delivery strategies to address superbug infections that existing antibiotics cannot resolve. We will continue our research with the aim of expanding its application to systemic infections and various other infectious diseases,” said Hyun Jung Chung, the lead researcher and associate professor at the Department of Biological Sciences, KAIST.
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Source: Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST); Image: Shutterstock
This study can be found at Microbubble-Controlled Delivery of Biofilm-TargetingNanoparticles to Treat MRSA Infection
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