Argon Humidification Exacerbates Antimicrobial and Anti-MRSA kINPen Plasma Activity

Abstract

Gas plasma is a medical technology with antimicrobial properties. Its main mode of action is oxidative damage via reactive species production. The clinical efficacy of gas plasma-reduced bacterial burden has been shown to be hampered in some cases. Since the reactive species profile produced by gas plasma jets, such as the kINPen used in this study, are thought to determine antimicrobial efficacy, we screened an array of feed gas settings in different types of bacteria. Antimicrobial analysis was performed by single-cell analysis using flow cytometry. We identified humidified feed gas to mediate significantly greater toxicity compared to dry argon and many other gas plasma conditions. The results were confirmed by inhibition zone analysis on gas-plasma-treated microbial lawns grown on agar plates. Our results may have vital implications for clinical wound management and potentially enhance antimicrobial efficacy of medical gas plasma therapy in patient treatment.

Synergistic effect of cold gas plasma and experimental drug exposure exhibits skin cancer toxicity in vitro and in vivo

“…In contrast to other innovative ROS-based treatment approaches, including PDT, sono- [47] , chemo- [48] , and radiodynamic therapy [49] , gas plasmas are exceptional in generating a plethora of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species locally, at high cost-efficacy, and seemless applicability. Variation of the operating feed gas further allows tuning ROS and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) chemistries for specific applications [38] , [50] , [51] . Among available plasma devices, plasma jets are widely used in biomedical applications.…”

Advances in Gas Therapeutics for Wound Healing: Mechanisms, Delivery Materials, and Prospects

“…[20,202] A decade ago, cold physical plasma was approved for the treatment of nonhealing and infected wounds in Europe. [203] Cold plasma may destroy biofilm matrices, kill bacteria, change the characteristics of the ECM, and control cell signaling to encourage particular cellular behavior. [20] The roles of cold physical plasma in wound healing are shown in Figure 2.…”