{"id":52911,"date":"2026-04-28T09:18:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-28T13:18:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/chembe\/?post_type=news&#038;p=52911"},"modified":"2026-04-28T09:24:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T13:24:09","slug":"combat-ready-care","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/chembe\/news\/combat-ready-care\/","title":{"rendered":"Combat-Ready Care: A New Wound Dressing That Stops Bleeding and Fights Infection"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Johns\u00a0Hopkins\u00a0chemical and biomolecular engineering\u00a0students\u00a0are\u00a0developing Frontline Seal-48, a wound dressing designed to stop bleeding quickly while providing sustained antimicrobial protection for up to\u00a048 hours.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The students will present their\u00a0work\u00a0on\u00a0April 28 at\u00a0the Whiting School of Engineering\u2019s\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/engineering.jhu.edu\/designcenter\/designday\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Design Day<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">,\u00a0an annual event\u00a0showcasing\u00a0students\u2019 solutions to real-world problems.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Frontline Seal-48\u00a0is designed to address a known gap in current military-standard dressings that typically\u00a0stop bleeding without fighting infection, and individual first-aid kits rarely include materials to prevent wounds from becoming infected.\u00a0\u201cWhile there are products that do\u00a0both,\u00a0their protection is short-lived,\u201d\u00a0says\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">Anh Tu (Jenny) Tran<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">.\u00a0\u201cWe focused on creating a formulation that lasts significantly longer\u2014engineered specifically for prolonged care scenarios.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The team\u2019s\u00a0design was created in\u00a0response to a\u00a0JHubMed\u00a0initiative led by\u00a0Colonel\u00a0Harvey Pynn\u00a0to address infection and antimicrobial resistance in battlefield and prolonged-care settings. The students chose a \u201cbetter, not different\u201d approach,\u00a0to\u00a0embed a sustained antimicrobial system into a standard hemostatic gauze so medics can use familiar protocols while gaining added protection.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cWe wanted to solve a real problem at the point of injury,\u201d says\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">Zoey Bennett<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. \u201cIf evacuation is delayed, stopping bleeding alone is not enough\u2014infection becomes a major risk. The design fits existing wound-care workflows and first-aid kit contents;\u00a0it is intended to be easy to adopt without extra training or complexity.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Frontline Seal-48\u00a0pairs\u00a0kaolin-based gauze, which speeds clotting, with silver and copper ions that release over time to inhibit bacterial growth. \u201cWhen it contacts wound fluid,\u00a0the dressing helps form a clot immediately,\u201d says\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">Kevin Estevez<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. \u201cThen the metals release slowly to reduce bacterial growth for hours afterward.\u201d The team says the combined action is intended for contaminated environments and longer evacuation times.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The group described a simple, scalable manufacturing path. \u201cWe start with kaolin-treated gauze, then use a soaking and reduction step to bind silver and copper into the\u00a0material\u00a0so\u00a0they\u2019re not just sitting on the surface,\u201d\u00a0says\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">Claire Fuller<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. Safety and durability were priorities. \u201cWe developed a kaolin shedding test to make sure particles stay in the fabric, and we ran zones-of-inhibition tests to confirm sustained antimicrobial activity.\u00a0Those checks matter for both performance and user safety.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Design Center funding allowed the team to expand purchases and run experiments they could not have afforded otherwise.\u00a0\u201cThat support validated our work and gave us confidence to pursue more rigorous testing,\u201d\u00a0says\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">Zoe Gaillard.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The students also prepared a business case, including marketing and operational plans, and competed\u00a0in the\u00a0HopStart\u00a0Medical Technology Ventures category.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The team plans to transfer its experimental findings and data to\u00a0JHubMed\u00a0through a Report of Invention at the end of the semester so the design can be developed further. \u201cWe\u2019re going our separate ways after this term\u2014grad school, med school and industry\u2014but we want this work to continue,\u201d\u00a0says\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">Tran<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. \u201cOne of the most motivating and rewarding parts of this project is knowing that our product has the potential to save lives.\u00a0Colonel\u00a0Pynn has already expressed interest in using the\u00a0initial\u00a0design for training, and we are excited to see how Frontline\u00a0Seal-48 helps people in the future.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"template":"","class_list":["post-52911","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry","news_categories-students","news_categories-undergraduate"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.9 - 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