We are excited to announce the publication of our latest research in Nature.com
Background and Significance
Bacterial infections pose an escalating global health crisis, with projections indicating deaths from bacterial diseases will exceed those from cancer by 2050. The growing threat of antibiotic resistance and the challenges posed by biofilm-associated infections demand innovative and effective therapeutic solutions. Our research highlights mucosomes as a highly promising strategy to significantly improve antibiotic delivery and treatment outcomes.
Key Findings
Our study demonstrates that mucosomes retain the critical natural properties of mucins, enabling a strong synergy with antibiotics. This innovative platform significantly boosts antimicrobial effects, marking a major step forward in combating persistent bacterial infections.
- Empty mucosomes alone exhibited bacteriostatic effects, inhibiting bacterial growth by up to 70%.
- Ciprofloxacin-loaded mucosomes were able to reduce the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of ciprofloxacin against Staphylococcus aureus by as much as 50%.
- Mucosomes effectively prevented the formation of bacterial biofilms and disrupted established biofilms, reducing biomass by up to 98%.
- In a 3D mucus-mimicking model, mucosomes enhanced the transmucosal delivery of ciprofloxacin, suggesting superior penetration and release at infection sites.
- The system allows freeze-drying and long-term storage of drug-loaded mucosomes without loss of efficacy—a crucial advantage for clinical translation.
- Interestingly, mucosomes also enhance the blood’s natural phagocytic ability to eradicate bacterial biofilms, further potentiating antibacterial effects.
Mucosomes as next-generation drug carriers for treating mucus-resident bacterial infections and biofilm
Sci Rep 15, 27071 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-10496-y
Giuseppe Guagliano, Emanuela Peluso, Cosmin Stefan Butnarasu, Elisa Restivo, Lorenzo Sardelli, Enrica Frasca, Paola Petrini, Nicola Tirelli, Stefania Sganga, Livia Visai & Sonja Visentin