Grant: CIHR New Investigator

This research will prevent urinary tract infections in patients with ureteral stents, as the attachment of bacteria to these tubes is a common cause for hospital acquired infections. Ureteral stents are commonly used by a urologic surgeon in the treatment of kidney stones or other issues causing the ureter to become blocked. Urinary devices account for >80% of hospital acquired infections which are difficult to treat. In addition to increased mortality, these complications add millions of extra health care costs. Currently, antibiotics are our only method of attempting to deal with these infections, but they do not work well due to bacteria forming large communities on the surface of these devices, called biofilms, that can not be penetrated by antibiotics, therefore making them highly resistant. The project included in this application is based on the latest breakthroughs by the Lange, Straus, Kizhakkedathu, and Hancock laboratories at UBC on the development of a novel universal method to coat these devices with novel short broad spectrum anti-bioflim peptides (ABPs) designed to prevent proteins and other components from urine as well as bacteria from attaching to the surface of ureteral stents, thereby decreasing the number of infections caused by these devices. We anticipate that the technologies developed will help the more than 3 million Canadians who need urological intervention each year. The project will establish a strong collaboration among natural science, and medicine, and provide unique HQP training opportunities. The novel anti-infection coatings will also provide a general method for preventing infections associated with other medical devices.