New Conversing Technology; Plasma Medicine

Abstract

Plasma is generated by ionizing of neutral gas molecules, resulting in a mixture of energy particles, including electrons and ions. Recent progress in the understanding of non-thermal atmospheric plasma has led to applications in biomedicine. Studies investigating the interaction of plasma jets with living cells have shown eradication of pathogens, blood coagulation, and the ablation of cultured cancer cells. The effects of cold atmospheric plasma are thus not due to heat, but to active species, mainly oxygen/hydroxyl radicals and nitric oxide, generated in the plasma or in the tissue brought into contact with the plasma. Plasma treatment offers the possibility of modifying tissues at the cellular level and removing diseased sections without inflammation and damage, as well as suppressing infections. Our study showed that non-thermal atmospheric plasma induced growth inhibition and cell death in cancer cells. This study supports the hypothesis that non-thermal atmospheric plasma constitutes a new biologic tool with the potential for therapeutic applications that modulate cell structure and function.