title: Atmospheric pressure plasmas: infection control and bacterial responses.
abstract: Cold atmospheric pressure plasma (APP) is a recent, cutting-edge antimicrobial treatment. It has the potential to be used as an alternative to traditional treatments such as antibiotics and as a promoter of wound healing, making it a promising tool in a range of biomedical applications with particular importance for combating infections. A number of studies show very promising results for APP-mediated killing of bacteria, including removal of biofilms of pathogenic bacteria such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa. However, the mode of action of APP and the resulting bacterial response are not fully understood. Use of a variety of different plasma-generating devices, different types of plasma gases and different treatment modes makes it challenging to show reproducibility and transferability of results. This review considers some important studies in which APP was used as an antibacterial agent, and specifically those that elucidate its mode of action, with the aim of identifying common bacterial responses to APP exposure. The review has a particular emphasis on mechanisms of interactions of bacterial biofilms with APP.
authors.affiliation: CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering, P.O. Box 218, Lindfield, NSW 2070, Australia. Electronic address: anne@amp-bio.com.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mai-Prochnow
authors.affiliation: CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering, P.O. Box 218, Lindfield, NSW 2070, Australia.
authors.forename: Anthony B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.affiliation: CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering, Bayview Avenue, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia.
authors.forename: Keith M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: McLean
authors.affiliation: Frank Reidy Research Center for Bioelectrics, Old Dominion University, Suite 422, 4211 Monarch Way, Norfolk, VA 23529, USA.
authors.forename: Michael G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Kong
authors.affiliation: CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering, P.O. Box 218, Lindfield, NSW 2070, Australia.
authors.forename: Kostya Ken
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Ostrikov
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001274:Atmospheric Pressure; D001419:Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D017053:Infection Control / Q000379:methods*; D058626:Plasma Gases / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D058626:Plasma Gases
keywords: Atmospheric pressure plasma; Bacterial resistance; Biofilms