April 8, 2026
Human health isn’t the only field benefiting from advances in nanomedicine: researchers associated with CEDENNA have developed innovative veterinary products to improve animal health and well-being, particularly in dogs and cats.
In a country where pet ownership is growing exponentially, veterinarians have also noted a rise in antibiotic resistance, especially in dogs. In response to this problem, and together with companies interested in commercializing scientifically proven products, Dr. Jessica Bravo, a researcher at the Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (CEDENNA) and director of UDP’s Biomedical Research Center, led a Fondef project that successfully developed prototypes of a hydrogel and a shampoo made with essential oils from native Chilean plants, capable of preventing infections as damaging as pyoderma, a bacterial skin infection in dogs that causes pus, itching, redness, and hair loss, and is often triggered by allergies or parasites.
Since it is such a widespread condition, veterinarians have so far lacked specific treatments for it. By contrast, the products developed by Dr. Bravo’s team have already been used successfully in veterinary clinical trials.
The research team, made up of members from UDP, Universidad Mayor, CEDENNA, and the Bioactive Natural Products Laboratory, hopes to soon take the definitive step toward technology transfer: advancing toward nanoencapsulation of their discovery, which would allow it to be used in very small quantities and support its commercialization in everyday products capable of preventing or controlling infection.
