Inactivation process observation of HeLa cells induced by EB irradiated atmospheric-pressure plasma

Abstract

Atmospheric pressure low temperature plasma has been applied in various research fields. In biological applications using atmospheric pressure plasma, various chemically active species can be generated in gas phase by the plasma. The chemically active species are generated in the liquid phase such as blood, body fluid, and culture media, they are thought that it contributes to the growth and sterilization of cells and fungi. In this study, in order to investigate the mechanism of inactivation of cancer cells induced by atmospheric pressure plasma, we used electron beam which is useful to avoid complicated plasma reaction and study the radical reaction with cells and mediums. Difference between influence in H2O2 production and the death feature of cell were studied. Three kinds of seeding gases (nitrogen, oxygen and helium) were used. By the results of this study, in the HeLa cells death caused by EB plasma, it is suggested that the products other than H2O2 can be the cause of cell inactivation. Moreover, it was also confirmed that the feature of cell death changes from apoptosis to necrosis by the accumulation of the stress in plasma irradiation.