A 17-Year-Old’s Plant-based Gel Stops Bleeding in Seconds

A 17-Year-Old’s Plant-based Gel Stops Bleeding in Seconds

A new gel that instantly stops bleeding, creates clots, and fully heals wounds is about to hit the U.S. market at the end of the summer.

VetiGel, an algae-based polymer created by Joe Landolina when he was 17, will be shipped to veterinarians through Landolina’s biotech company, Suneris. And if all goes well, humans shouldn’t be far behind.

After an injured area has been injected with this revolutionary gel, the wound clots and heals within 12 seconds.

“The fastest piece of equipment we have measures every 12 seconds,” Landolina, now 22, told Business Insider. “So we know that it happens in less than 12 seconds.”

See the fast-acting VetiGel go to work in this demonstration:

The key to the simple science behind the gel is algae. Composed of small, individual polymers, they can be broken down and put into the gel, detached, “like Lego blocks” as Landolina describes it. Once the gel touches a wound – it works on both open or organ injuries – it instantly merges to create a mesh-like material. Most importantly, it facilitates the production of fibrin on the wound’s surface, the key to repairing tissue and healing the wound properly.

The initial product is a five-pack of 5-milimeter syringes that go for around $150. Rollouts start in the U.S., with Europe and Asia in the company’s sights next year.

Down the road, Lalondina is confident he can acquire FDA approval to begin testing on human ailments. Helping military personnel and EMTs treat severe injuries are priorities. From there, he hopes to go to operating rooms, and finally, people’s homes.

Photo credit: gopfaster/Shutterstock

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