Inactivation of mycobacteria by radicals from non-thermal plasma jet.

Inactivation of mycobacteria by radicals from non-thermal plasma jet. J Microbiol Biotechnol. 2019 Aug 21;: Authors: Lee C, Subhadra B, Choi HG, Suh HW, Uhm HS, Kim HJ Abstract Mycobacterial cell walls comprise thick and diverse lipids and glycolipids that act as a permeability barrier to antibiotics or other chemical agents. The use of OH radicals from a non-thermal plasma jet (NTPJ) for the inactivation of mycobacteria in aqueous solution was adopted as a novel approach. Addition of water vapor in a nitrogen plasma jet generated OH radicals, which converted to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) that inactivated non-pathogenic Mycobacterium smegmatis and pathogenic Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv. A stable plasma plume was obtained from a nitrogen plasma jet with 1.91 W power killing Escherichia coli and mycobacteria effectively, whereas addition of catalase decreased the effects of the former. Mycobacteria were more resistant than E. coli to NTPJ treatment. Plasma treatment enhanced intracellular ROS production and upregulation of genes related to ROS stress responses (thiol-related oxidoreductases, such as SseA and DoxX, and ferric uptake regulator furA). Morphological changes of M.smegmatis and M. tuberculosis H37Rv were observed after 5 min treatment with N2+H2O plasma, but not of pre-incubated sample with catalase. This finding indicates that the bactericidal efficacy of NTPJ is related to the toxicity of OH and H2O2 radicals in cells. ...
Source: Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology - Category: Biotechnology Authors: Tags: J Microbiol Biotechnol Source Type: research