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- ItemSpontaneous fluctuations in a plasma ion assisted deposition – correlation between deposition conditions and vanadium oxide thin film growth(Amsterdam [u.a.] : Elsevier, 2021) Frank, Anna; Dias, Miguel; Hieke, Stefan; Kruth, Angela; Scheu, ChristinaIn this work correlations between thin film crystallinity of plasma ion assisted electron beam evaporated vanadium oxide (VOx) and fluctuations of the deposition parameters during the growth process could be observed by in situ monitoring deposition conditions and electron microscopy studies. In the presented case, unintentional fluctuations in the gas flow at the plasma source caused by inhomogeneous melting of the target material lead to an increase in discharge current and therefore a decrease of the oxygen flow in the plasma source, resulting in the formation of highly crystalline bands due to a temporary increase in energy flux. The major part of the VOx thin film consists of a large number of nanocrystals embedded in an amorphous phase. In-depth structural analysis confirms a mixture of V2O5, in different modifications, VO2, as well as the mixed-valence oxides V4O9 and V6O13, for nanocrystalline parts and crystalline bands. These differ mainly in the degree of crystallinity being influenced by variations in discharge current, and partly in the amount of higher oxidized vanadium oxides. In future, precisely controlled variation of plasma source conditions will open up pathways to control and tailor crystallinity of electron beam evaporated thin films, allowing for production methods for patterned thin films or layers with graduated crystallinity. This may give rise to a new class of coatings of nanohybrids combining amorphous VOx with low electrical conductivity and crystalline domains providing a higher electrical conductivity which is useful for electrochromic displays, smart windows, and solar cells.
- ItemInfluence of redox stress on crosstalk between fibroblasts and keratinocytes(Basel : MDPI, 2021) Bhartiya, Pradeep; Masur, Kai; Shome, Debarati; Kaushik, Neha; Nguyen, Linh N.; Kaushik, Nagendra Kumar; Choi, Eun HaAlthough the skin is constantly subjected to endogenous and exogenous stress, it maintains a homeostatic state through wound repair and regeneration pathways. Treatment for skin diseases and injury requires a significant understanding of the various mechanisms and interactions that occur within skin cells. Keratinocytes and fibroblasts interact with each other and act as key players in the repair process. Although fibroblasts and keratinocytes are widely studied in wound healing and skin remodeling under different conditions, the influence of redox stress on keratinocyte-fibroblast crosstalk has not been thoroughly investigated. In this study, we used cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) to generate and deliver oxidative stress to keratinocytes and fibroblasts and to assess its impact on their interactions. To this end, we used a well-established in vitro 3D co-culture model imitating a realistic scenario. Our study shows that low CAP exposure is biocompatible and does not affect the viability or energetics of fibroblasts and keratinocytes. Exposure to low doses of CAP enhanced the proliferation rate of cells and stimulated the expression of key genes (KGF, MMP2, GMCSF, IL-6, and IL-8) in fibroblasts, indicating the activation and initiation of the skin repair process. Additionally, enhanced migration was observed under co-culture conditions under the given redox stress conditions, and expression of the upstream regulator and the effectors of the Hippo pathway (YAP and CYR61, respectively), which are associated with enhanced migration, were elevated. Overall, this study reinforces the application of CAP and redox stress in skin repair physiology.
- ItemMolecular mechanisms of the efficacy of cold atmospheric pressure plasma (CAP) in cancer treatment(Basel : MDPI AG, 2020) Semmler, Marie Luise; Bekeschus, Sander; Schäfer, Mirijam; Bernhardt, Thoralf; Fischer, Tobias; Witzke, Katharina; Seebauer, Christian; Rebl, Henrike; Grambow, Eberhard; Vollmar, Brigitte; Nebe, J. Barbara; Metelmann, Hans-Robert; Woedtke, Thomas von; Emmert, Steffen; Boeckmann, LarsRecently, the potential use of cold atmospheric pressure plasma (CAP) in cancer treatment has gained increasing interest. Especially the enhanced selective killing of tumor cells compared to normal cells has prompted researchers to elucidate the molecular mechanisms for the efficacy of CAP in cancer treatment. This review summarizes the current understanding of how CAP triggers intracellular pathways that induce growth inhibition or cell death. We discuss what factors may contribute to the potential selectivity of CAP towards cancer cells compared to their non-malignant counterparts. Furthermore, the potential of CAP to trigger an immune response is briefly discussed. Finally, this overview demonstrates how these concepts bear first fruits in clinical applications applying CAP treatment in head and neck squamous cell cancer as well as actinic keratosis. Although significant progress towards understanding the underlying mechanisms regarding the efficacy of CAP in cancer treatment has been made, much still needs to be done with respect to different treatment conditions and comparison of malignant and non-malignant cells of the same cell type and same donor. Furthermore, clinical pilot studies and the assessment of systemic effects will be of tremendous importance towards bringing this innovative technology into clinical practice. © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
- ItemTumor cytotoxicity and immunogenicity of a novel V-jet neon plasma source compared to the kINPen(London : Nature Publishing Group, 2021) Miebach, Lea; Freund, Eric; Horn, Stefan; Niessner, Felix; Sagwal, Sanjeev Kumar; von Woedtke, Thomas; Emmert, Steffen; Weltmann, Klaus-Dieter; Clemen, Ramona; Schmidt, Anke; Gerling, Torsten; Bekeschus, SanderRecent research indicated the potential of cold physical plasma in cancer therapy. The plethora of plasma-derived reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) mediate diverse antitumor effects after eliciting oxidative stress in cancer cells. We aimed at exploiting this principle using a newly designed dual-jet neon plasma source (Vjet) to treat colorectal cancer cells. A treatment time-dependent ROS/RNS generation induced oxidation, growth retardation, and cell death within 3D tumor spheroids were found. In TUM-CAM, a semi in vivo model, the Vjet markedly reduced vascularized tumors' growth, but an increase of tumor cell immunogenicity or uptake by dendritic cells was not observed. By comparison, the argon-driven single jet kINPen, known to mediate anticancer effects in vitro, in vivo, and in patients, generated less ROS/RNS and terminal cell death in spheroids. In the TUM-CAM model, however, the kINPen was equivalently effective and induced a stronger expression of immunogenic cancer cell death (ICD) markers, leading to increased phagocytosis of kINPen but not Vjet plasma-treated tumor cells by dendritic cells. Moreover, the Vjet was characterized according to the requirements of the DIN-SPEC 91315. Our results highlight the plasma device-specific action on cancer cells for evaluating optimal discharges for plasma cancer treatment.
- ItemHigh-Performance GaAs/AlAs Terahertz Quantum-Cascade Lasers for Spectroscopic Applications(New York, NY : IEEE, 2020) Schrottke, Lutz; Lü, Xiang; Röben, Benjamin; Biermann, Klaus; Hagelschuer, Till; Wienold, Martin; Hübers, Heinz-Wilhelm; Hannemann, Mario; van Helden, Jean-Pierre H.; Röpcke, Jürgen; Grahn, Holger T.We have developed terahertz (THz) quantum-cascade lasers (QCLs) based on GaAs/AlAs heterostructures for application-defined emission frequencies between 3.4 and 5.0 THz. Due to their narrow line width and rather large intrinsic tuning range, these THz QCLs can be used as local oscillators in airborne or satellite-based astronomical instruments or as radiation sources for high-resolution absorption spectroscopy, which is expected to allow for a quantitative determination of the density of atoms and ions in plasma processes. The GaAs/AlAs THz QCLs can be operated in mechanical cryocoolers and even in miniature cryocoolers due to the comparatively high wall-plug efficiency of around 0.2% and typical current densities below 500 A/cm$^2$. These lasers emit output powers of more than 1 mW at operating temperatures up to about 70 K, which is sufficient for most of the abovementioned applications. © 2011-2012 IEEE.
- ItemAcquired cancer tyrosine kinase inhibitor resistance: ROS as critical determinants(London : Macmillan Publishers, part of Springer Nature, 2021) Bekeschus, Sander[No abstract available]
- ItemArgon Humidification Exacerbates Antimicrobial and Anti-MRSA kINPen Plasma Activity(Basel : MDPI, 2023) Clemen, Ramona; Singer, Debora; Skowski, Henry; Bekeschus, SanderGas 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.
- ItemOne-Step Liquid Phase Polymerization of HEMA by Atmospheric-Pressure Plasma Discharges for Ti Dental Implants(Basel : MDPI, 2021) Buxadera-Palomero, Judit; Fricke, Katja; Reuter, Stephan; Gil, Francisco Javier; Rodriguez, Daniel; Canal, CristinaDental implants can fail due to various factors, in which bad tissue integration is believed to have a significant role. Specific properties of the implant surface, such as its chemistry and roughness, are of paramount importance to address specific cell responses, such as the adsorption of proteins, as well as the adhesion and differentiation of cells, which are suitable for biomaterial and tissue engineering. In this study, an acrylate-containing coating was produced on titanium surfaces through the atmospheric pressure plasma treatment of a liquid precursor, 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate. A hydrophilic coating was obtained, showing retention of the monomer chemistry as assessed by FTIR analysis and XPS. Enhanced fibroblast adhesion and decreased Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli adhesion were recorded, showing that this is a suitable method to produce biocompatible coatings with a reduced bacterial adhesion.
- ItemRadiobiological effects of wound fluid on breast cancer cell lines and human-derived tumor spheroids in 2D and microfluidic culture([London] : Macmillan Publishers Limited, part of Springer Nature, 2022) Jeibouei, Shabnam; Hojat, Ali; Mostafavi, Ebrahim; Aref, Amir Reza; Kalbasi, Alireza; Niazi, Vahid; Ajoudanian, Mohammad; Mohammadi, Farzaneh; Saadati, Fariba; Javadi, Seyed Mohammadreza; Shams, Forough; Moghaddam, Maryam; Karami, Farshid; Sharifi, Kazem; Moradian, Farid; Akbari, Mohammad Esmaeil; Zali, HakimehIntraoperative radiotherapy (IORT) could abrogate cancer recurrences, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. To clarify the effects of IORT-induced wound fluid on tumor progression, we treated breast cancer cell lines and human-derived tumor spheroids in 2D and microfluidic cell culture systems, respectively. The viability, migration, and invasion of the cells under treatment of IORT-induced wound fluid (WF-RT) and the cells under surgery-induced wound fluid (WF) were compared. Our findings showed that cell viability was increased in spheroids under both WF treatments, whereas viability of the cell lines depended on the type of cells and incubation times. Both WFs significantly increased sub-G1 and arrested the cells in G0/G1 phases associated with increased P16 and P21 expression levels. The expression level of Caspase 3 in both cell culture systems and for both WF-treated groups was significantly increased. Furthermore, our results revealed that although the migration was increased in both systems of WF-treated cells compared to cell culture media-treated cells, E-cadherin expression was significantly increased only in the WF-RT group. In conclusion, WF-RT could not effectively inhibit tumor progression in an ex vivo tumor-on-chip model. Moreover, our data suggest that a microfluidic system could be a suitable 3D system to mimic in vivo tumor conditions than 2D cell culture.
- ItemMicrobial Control of Raw and Cold-Smoked Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) through a Microwave Plasma Treatment(Basel : MDPI, 2022) Weihe, Thomas; Wagner, Robert; Schnabel, Uta; Andrasch, Mathias; Su, Yukun; Stachowiak, Jörg; Noll, Heinz Jörg; Ehlbeck, JörgThe control of the pathogenic load on foodstuffs is a key element in food safety. Particularly, seafood such as cold-smoked salmon is threatened by pathogens such as Salmonella sp. or Listeria monocytogenes. Despite strict existing hygiene procedures, the production industry constantly demands novel, reliable methods for microbial decontamination. Against that background, a microwave plasma-based decontamination technique via plasma-processed air (PPA) is presented. Thereby, the samples undergo two treatment steps, a pre-treatment step where PPA is produced when compressed air flows over a plasma torch, and a post-treatment step where the PPA acts on the samples. This publication embraces experiments that compare the total viable count (tvc) of bacteria found on PPA-treated raw (rs) and cold-smoked salmon (css) samples and their references. The tvc over the storage time is evaluated using a logistic growth model that reveals a PPA sensitivity for raw salmon (rs). A shelf-life prolongation of two days is determined. When cold-smoked salmon (css) is PPA-treated, the treatment reveals no further impact. When PPA-treated raw salmon (rs) is compared with PPA-untreated cold-smoked salmon (css), the PPA treatment appears as reliable as the cold-smoking process and retards the growth of cultivable bacteria in the same manner. The experiments are flanked by quality measurements such as color and texture measurements before and after the PPA treatment. Salmon samples, which undergo an overtreatment, solely show light changes such as a whitish surface flocculation. A relatively mild treatment as applied in the storage experiments has no further detected impact on the fish matrix.