Low power gas discharge plasma mediated inactivation and removal of biofilms formed on biomaterials

Christian Traba, Long Chen, Jun F. Liang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

30 Scopus citations

Abstract

The antibacterial activity of gas discharge plasma has been studied for quiet some time. However, high biofilm inactivation activity of plasma was only recently reported. Studies indicate that the etching effect associated with plasmas generated represent an undesired effect, which may cause live bacteria relocation and thus contamination spreading. Meanwhile, the strong etching effects from these high power plasmas may also alter the surface chemistry and affect the biocompatibility of biomaterials. In this study, we examined the efficiency and effectiveness of low power gas discharge plasma for biofilm inactivation and removal. Among the three tested gases, oxygen, nitrogen, and argon, discharge oxygen demonstrated the best anti-biofilm activity because of its excellent ability in killing bacteria in biofilms and mild etching effects. Low power discharge oxygen completely killed and then removed the dead bacteria from attached surface but had negligible effects on the biocompatibility of materials. DNA left on the regenerated surface after removal of biofilms did not have any negative impact on tissue cell growth. On the contrary, dramatically increased growth was found for these cells seeded on regenerated surfaces. These results demonstrate the potential applications of low power discharge oxygen in biofilm treatments of biomaterials and indwelling device decontaminations.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)S12-S18
JournalCurrent Applied Physics
Volume13
Issue numberSUPPL.1
DOIs
StatePublished - 20 Mar 2013

Keywords

  • Biofilms
  • Biomaterials
  • Contamination
  • Gas discharge plasma
  • Infections
  • Sterilization

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Low power gas discharge plasma mediated inactivation and removal of biofilms formed on biomaterials'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this