A peptide hydrogel with an antimicrobial activity is developed as a bandage contact lens. The antimicrobial activity is enhanced with the addition of the biomolecules penicillin G or poly-ε-lysine and is positive against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. The lens is also noncytotoxic toward a human corneal epithelial cell line and as a consequence is of great potential as a drug-eluting bandage lens replacing conventional corneal ulcer treatment.
Keywords: antimicrobial; bandage lens; cornea; drug delivery; hydrogel.
© 2016 The Authors. Published by WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.