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    Gas Plasma-Oxidized Liquids for Cancer Treatment: Preclinical Relevance, Immuno-Oncology, and Clinical Obstacles
    (New York, NY : IEEE, 2021) Freund, Eric; Bekeschus, Sander
    Gas plasmas, often referred to as cold physical plasma, are currently being investigated for their potential to serve as anticancer agents. Along similar lines, gas plasma-oxidized liquids as a carrier for reactive oxygen species have found their way into preclinical research. This review focuses on in vivo studies that utilized such gas plasma-oxidized liquids for cancer therapies. These preclinical tumor models, treatment modalities, and types of liquids that were used are summarized and critically discussed. Among these studies, significant results were observed, indicating the potential of oxidative liquids to serve as an anticancer treatment. However, several steps have to be taken to enhance the quality and translational capacities of this approach in order to gain clinical acceptance for possible future cancer therapies. The most crucial steps include not only a careful selection of suitable liquids, with respect to their approval as medical products, but also the consideration of orthotopic and immunocompetent animal tumor models. This would increase the relevance of such studies and simultaneously allow studying the contribution of the most potent of all anticancer effectors, the immune system.
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    Hyperspectral Imaging of Wounds Reveals Augmented Tissue Oxygenation following Cold Physical Plasma Treatment in Vivo
    (New York, NY : IEEE, 2021) Schmidt, Anke; Niesner, Felix; von Woedtke, Thomas; Bekeschus, Sander
    Efficient vascularization of skin tissue supports wound healing in response to injury. This includes elevated blood circulation, tissue oxygenation, and perfusion. Cold physical plasma promotes wound healing in animal models and humans. Physical plasmas are multicomponent systems that generate several physicochemical effectors, such as ions, electrons, reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, and UV radiation. However, the consequences of plasma treatment on wound oxygenation and perfusion, vital processes to promote tissue regeneration, are largely unexplored. We used a novel hyperspectral imaging (HSI) system and a murine dermal full-thickness wound model in combination with kINPen argon plasma jet treatment to address this question. Plasma treatment promoted tissue oxygenation in superficial as well as deep (6 mm) layers of wound tissue. In addition to perfusion changes, we found a wound healing stage-dependent shift of tissue hemoglobin and tissue water index during reactive species-driven wound healing. Contactless, fast monitoring of medical parameters in real-time using HSI revealed a plasma-supporting effect in wound healing together with precise information about biological surface-specific features.
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    Gas Plasma Technology-An Asset to Healthcare during Viral Pandemics Such as the COVID-19 Crisis?
    (New York, NY : IEEE, 2020) Bekeschus, Sander; Kramer, Axel; Suffredini, Elisabetta; von Woedtke, Thomas; Colombo, Vittorio
    The COVID-19 crisis profoundly disguised the vulnerability of human societies and healthcare systems in the situation of a pandemic. In many instances, it became evident that the quick and safe reduction of viral load and spread is the foremost principle in the successful management of such a pandemic. However, it became also clear that many of the established routines in healthcare are not always sufficient to cope with the increased demand for decontamination procedures of items, healthcare products, and even infected tissues. For the last 25 years, the use of gas plasma technology has sparked a tremendous amount of literature on its decontaminating properties, especially for heat-labile targets, such as polymers and tissues, where chemical decontamination often is not appropriate. However, while the majority of earlier work focused on bacteria, only relatively few reports are available on the inactivation of viruses. We here aim to provide a perspective for the general audience of the chances and opportunities of gas plasma technology for supporting healthcare during viral pandemics such as the COVID-19 crisis. This includes possible real-world plasma applications, appropriate laboratory viral test systems, and critical points on the technical and safety requirements of gas plasmas for virus inactivation.