Irradiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells with an Argon Plasma Jet with Various Oxygen Admixtures
摘要
The results of experiments on the usage of a low-temperature plasma (LTP) jet to activate the nutrient liquid medium αMEM containing mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) isolated from the bone marrow of Wistar rats are presented. The LTP jet had been created by an axially symmetric barrier discharge with a thin rod electrode located inside a quartz tube along its axis. The tube has been purged with argon at a flow rate of about 25 m/s at the tube output. The conditions under which LTP activation of the αMEM medium can accelerate MSC proliferation have been studied. It turns out that the final effect of the activated liquid medium on cells strongly depends on the purity of argon used to form the plasma jet. A small admixture of oxygen in argon at a level of 700 ppm leads to the formation of active oxygen species in the discharge and in the plasma jet, as well as ozone at a fairly high concentration. Ozone supplied by a jet into a liquid medium dissolves well in it and, as a strong oxidizer, can have a detrimental effect on stem cells. The results on the difference in the composition of active particles in plasma jets in pure argon and in argon with a small admixture of oxygen are presented, as well as the results of microbiological studies on the effect of two types of plasma jets on mesenchymal stem cells.