Joe Landolina, now 22, first found the algae-based compound known as “VetiGel” when he was a 17-year-old working in his grandfather’s laboratory.
The unusual substance is able to stop even profuse bleeding very rapidly, and is able to heal wounds completely within a few minutes.
The lifesaving compound works by turning into a mesh that is able to hold together damaged body tissue.
Landolina is now CEO of a biotech company, which is developing the product for use and describes the gel as being able to activate the natural process of blood clotting in the body.
Not only can the compound act as an adhesive to keep a wound together but it can also operate as a scaffold to enable the body to produce fibrin at the surface of the wound.
This polymerized fibrin is able to form a clot over the wound in conjunction with the body’s platelets.
At this moment, the product is only available for use by veterinarians.
A British company called Vet Plus, which focuses on the market expansion of animal medications, has already joined in partnership with Landolina’s biotech company.
However, it is expected that the FDA will approve the gel for use on wounds in humans within the next year.
