Anticancer Effects of Plasma-Treated Water Solutions from Clinically Approved Infusion Liquids Supplemented with Organic Molecules.

Water solutions treated by cold atmospheric plasmas (CAPs) currently stand out in the field of cancer treatment as sources of exogenous blends of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS). It is well known that the balance of RONS inside both eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells is directly involved in physiological as well as pathological pathways. Also, organic molecules including phenols could exert promising anticancer effects, mostly attributed to their pro-oxidant ability in vitro and in vivo to generate RONS like O, HO, and a mixture of potentially cytotoxic compounds.

Tuning Surface Properties via Plasma Treatments for the Improved Capture of MicroRNA Biomarkers.

Advanced materials could bring about fundamental improvements in the evolution of innovative analytical devices, i.e., biosensors or lab-on-a-chip devices, in particular in the context of liquid biopsies.

Plasma Technology Increases the Efficacy of Prothioconazole against and Contamination of Maize () Seedlings.

The contamination of maize by species able to produce mycotoxins raises great concern worldwide since they can accumulate these toxic metabolites in field crop products. Furthermore, little information exists today on the ability of and , two well know mycotoxigenic species, to translocate from the seeds to the plants up to the kernels. Marketing seeds coated with fungicide molecules is a common practice; however, since there is a growing need for reducing chemicals in agriculture, new eco-friendly strategies are increasingly tested.

Plasma Treated Water Solutions in Cancer Treatments: The Contrasting Role of RNS.

Plasma Treated Water Solutions (PTWS) recently emerged as a novel tool for the generation of Reactive Oxygen and Nitrogen Species (ROS and RNS) in liquids. The presence of ROS with a strong oxidative power, like hydrogen peroxide (HO), has been proposed as the main effector for the cancer-killing properties of PTWS. A protective role has been postulated for RNS, with nitric oxide (NO) being involved in the activation of antioxidant responses and cell survival.

A Synergistic Effect of Reactive Oxygen and Reactive Nitrogen Species in Plasma Activated Liquid Media Triggers Astrocyte Wound Healing.

Astrocyte proliferation and migration toward injured Central Nervous System (CNS) areas are key features of astrogliosis and glial scar formation. Even though it is known that intracellular and environmental Reactive Oxygen and Nitrogen Species (RONS) affect astrocyte behaviour in physiological and pathophysiological conditions, their effects on the migration and growth of astrocytes are still unclear. Plasma-technologies are emerging in medicine as a tool to generate RONS for treating cells directly or through Plasma Activated Liquid Media (PALM).

Initiated Chemical Vapor Deposition of Crosslinked Organic Coatings for Controlling Gentamicin Delivery.

A coating consisting of a copolymer of methacrylic acid and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate was deposited over a gentamicin film by initiated chemical vapor deposition with the aim of controlling the drug release. Gentamicin release in water was monitored by means of conductance measurements and of UV-vis Fluorescence Spectroscopy. The influence of the polymer chemical composition, specifically of its crosslinking density, has been investigated as a tool to control the swelling behavior of the initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD) coating in water, and therefore its ability to release the drug.

Plasma-activated medium triggers cell death and the presentation of immune activating danger signals in melanoma and pancreatic cancer cells.

Over the past decade, cold atmospheric plasmas have shown promising application in cancer therapy. The therapeutic use of plasma-activated media is a topic addressed in an emerging field known as plasma pharmacy. In oncology, plasma-activated media are  used to harness the therapeutic effects of oxidant species when they come in contact with cancer cells.

Plasma-Deposited Nanocapsules Containing Coatings for Drug Delivery Applications.

Coatings consisting in gentamicin-containing nanocapsules have been synthetized by means of an aerosol-assisted atmospheric pressure plasma deposition process. The influence of different parameters affecting the process has been extensively investigated by means of a morphological and chemical characterization of the coatings. Scanning electron microscopy highlighted the presence of nanocapsules whose size and abundance depend on power input and deposition time.

Improving Internal Cell Colonization of Porous Scaffolds with Chemical Gradients Produced by Plasma Assisted Approaches.

Cell colonization of the surrounding environment is a very significant process in both physiological and pathological events. In order to understand the tissue regeneration process and thereby provide guidance principles for designing new biomaterials, it is of paramount importance to study the cell colonization in the presence of physical, chemical, and biological cues. Flat "gradient" materials are generally used with this purpose.

Towards highly stable aqueous dispersions of multi-walled carbon nanotubes: the effect of oxygen plasma functionalization.

In order to improve the dispersion of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) in aqueous media, their surface functionalization was carried out in O-fed low-pressure plasmas. Differently from what can be found in the literature of this field, homogeneous functionalization was achieved by generating the plasma inside vials containing the nanotube powders properly stirred. Experimental parameters, such as input power, treatment time and pressure, were varied to investigate their influence on the process efficiency.

Highly Sensitive and Practical Detection of Plant Viruses via Electrical Impedance of Droplets on Textured Silicon-Based Devices.

Early diagnosis of plant virus infections before the disease symptoms appearance may represent a significant benefit in limiting disease spread by a prompt application of appropriate containment steps. We propose a label-free procedure applied on a device structure where the electrical signal transduction is evaluated via impedance spectroscopy techniques. The device consists of a droplet suspension embedding two representative purified plant viruses i.

Non-Equilibrium Plasma Processing for the Preparation of Antibacterial Surfaces.

Non-equilibrium plasmas offer several strategies for developing antibacterial surfaces that are able to repel and/or to kill bacteria. Due to the variety of devices, implants, and materials in general, as well as of bacteria and applications, plasma assisted antibacterial strategies need to be tailored to each specific surface. Nano-composite coatings containing inorganic (metals and metal oxides) or organic (drugs and biomolecules) compounds can be deposited in one step, and used as drug delivery systems.

Suppression of Hydrophobic Recovery by Plasma Polymer Films with Vertical Chemical Gradients.

Vertical chemical gradients extending over a few nanometers were explored. The gradients are based on plasma-polymerized oxygen-containing ethylene (ppOEt) films. Using plasma conditions with low CO2/C2H4 ratio and high energy input, cross-linked films were deposited as base layer, while increasing CO2 and lowering energy input resulted in less cross-linked yet highly functional films as applied as top layer.

Detection beyond Debye's length with an electrolyte-gated organic field-effect transistor.

Electrolyte-gated organic field-effect transistors are successfully used as biosensors to detect binding events occurring at distances from the transistor electronic channel that are much larger than the Debye length in highly concentrated solutions. The sensing mechanism is mainly capacitive and is due to the formation of Donnan's equilibria within the protein layer, leading to an extra capacitance (CDON) in series to the gating system.

Electrolyte-gated organic field-effect transistor sensors based on supported biotinylated phospholipid bilayer.

Anchored, biotinylated phospholipids forming the capturing layers in an electrolyte-gated organic field-effect transistor (EGOFET) allow label-free electronic specific detection at a concentration level of 10 nM in a high ionic strength solution. The sensing mechanism is based on a clear capacitive effect across the PL layers involving the charges of the target molecules.

Effect of native and NH3 plasma-functionalized polymeric membranes on the gene expression profiles of primary hepatocytes.

Little is known about how cells respond to different biomaterials at the molecular level. Biomaterials could stimulate specific cellular responses at the molecular level, such as activation of signalling pathways that control gene activity involved in the maintenance, growth and functional regeneration of liver tissue in vitro. This aspect is an important step in liver tissue engineering.

Uniform cell colonization of porous 3-D scaffolds achieved using radial control of surface chemistry.

Uniform cellular distribution is a prerequisite to forming tissue within porous scaffolds, but the seeding process often results in preferential adhesion of cells at the periphery. We develop a vapour phase coating strategy which is readily applicable to any porous solid to provide a uniform cellular distribution. Plasma polymerized allyl amine (ppAAm) is used to form a thin nitrogen-containing coating throughout porous three-dimensional (3-D) poly(d,l-lactic acid) scaffolds.

Cell adhesion on nanotextured slippery superhydrophobic substrates.

In this work, the response of Saos2 cells to polymeric surfaces with different roughness/density of nanometric dots produced by a tailored plasma-etching process has been studied. Topographical features have been evaluated by atomic force microscopy, while wetting behavior, in terms of water-surface adhesion energy, has been evaluated by measurements of drop sliding angle. Saos2 cytocompatibility has been investigated by scanning electron microscopy, fluorescent microscopy, and optical microscopy.

Osteoblast-like cell behavior on plasma deposited micro/nanopatterned coatings.

The behavior of cells in terms of cell-substrate and cell-cell interaction is dramatically affected by topographical characteristics as shape, height, and distance, encountered in their physiological environment. The combination of chemistry and topography of a biomaterial surface influences in turns, important biological responses as inflammatory events at tissue-implant interface, angiogenesis, and differentiation of cells. By disentangling the effect of material chemistry from the topographical one, the possibility of controlling the cell behavior can be provided.

Nanometric self-assembling peptide layers maintain adult hepatocyte phenotype in sandwich cultures.

Background: Isolated hepatocytes removed from their microenvironment soon lose their hepatospecific functions when cultured. Normally hepatocytes are commonly maintained under limited culture medium supply as well as scaffold thickness. Thus, the cells are forced into metabolic stress that degenerate liver specific functions.

Rat embryonic liver cell expansion and differentiation on NH3 plasma-grafted PEEK-WC-PU membranes.

Biomaterials can potentially influence stem and progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation in both a positive and a negative way. Herein, we report on the expansion and differentiation of rat embryonic (E17) liver (RLC-18) cells on new bioactive membrane made of PEEK-WC-PU, whose surface was grafted with nitrogen functionalities by means of NH(3) glow discharges. The performance of the developed membrane was evaluated by analyzing the expression of the liver specific functions of cells cultured in a 6-well gas-permeable bioreactor.

Improved functions of human hepatocytes on NH3 plasma-grafted PEEK-WC-PU membranes.

PEEK-WC-PU membranes were modified with an NH(3) glow discharge process to graft N-containing functional groups at their surface in order to improve the maintenance of human hepatocytes. Native and modified membrane surfaces were characterized with XPS, ToF-SIMS and WCA measurements. We have investigated morphological behaviour and specific functions of primary human hepatocytes on native and modified PEEK-WC-PU membranes in a small-scale gas-permeable bioreactor.

Increasing cell adhesion on plasma deposited fluorocarbon coatings by changing the surface topography.

In designing new biomaterials, it is of outstanding importance to consider how cells respond to specific chemical and topographical features on the material surface. The behavior of most cell types in vivo is strictly related to specific chemical and topographical cues that characterize the extra cellular environment. In particular, during their lives cells react to topographical patterns such as those of the extracellular matrix (ECM), of micro and/or nanometric dimensions.

Fetuin-A gene expression, synthesis and release in primary human hepatocytes cultured in a galactosylated membrane bioreactor.

This paper reports on human hepatocytes cultured in a galactosylated membrane bioreactor in order to explore the modulation of the effects of a pro-inflammatory cytokine, Interleukin-6 (IL-6) on the liver cells at molecular level. In particular the role of IL-6 on gene expression and production of a glycoprotein, fetuin-A produced by hepatocytes, was investigated by culturing hepatocytes in the membrane bioreactor, both in the absence and presence of IL-6 (300 pg/ml). IL-6 modulated the fetuin-A gene expression, synthesis and release by primary human hepatocytes cultured in the bioreactor.

Galactose derivative immobilized glow discharge processed polyethersulfone membranes maintain the liver cell metabolic activity.

New strategies aimed to surface modification of polymeric membranes are crucial to optimise cell-biomaterial interactions in vivo and in vitro biohybrid systems. In this paper, we investigated the surface modification of Polyethersulfone (PES) membranes by plasma polymerisation of acrylic acid monomers (PES-pdAA) and by immobilization of galactonic acid through a hydrophilic "spacer arm" molecule (PES-pdAA-SA-GAL). The modification steps were characterised by high resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.