21 CFR 640.74 - Modification of Source Plasma.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Modification of Source Plasma. 640.74 Section 640...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.74 Modification of Source Plasma. (a) Upon approval by the Director, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and...

21 CFR 640.74 - Modification of Source Plasma.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Modification of Source Plasma. 640.74 Section 640...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.74 Modification of Source Plasma. Link to an amendment published at 77 FR 18, Jan. 3, 2012. (a) Upon approval by the...

21 CFR 640.74 - Modification of Source Plasma.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2011-04-01 2010-04-01 true Modification of Source Plasma. 640.74 Section 640...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.74 Modification of Source Plasma. (a) Upon approval by the Director, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and...

21 CFR 640.74 - Modification of Source Plasma.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Modification of Source Plasma. 640.74 Section 640...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.74 Modification of Source Plasma. (a) Upon approval by the Director, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and...

21 CFR 640.74 - Modification of Source Plasma.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Modification of Source Plasma. 640.74 Section 640...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.74 Modification of Source Plasma. (a) Upon approval by the Director, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and...

21 CFR 640.32 - Collection of source material.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma § 640.32 Collection of source... blood is intended for Plasma, Fresh Frozen Plasma, and Liquid Plasma, until the plasma is removed, the..., Center for Biologics Evaluations and Research. Whole blood intended for Platelet Rich Plasma must be...

21 CFR 640.32 - Collection of source material.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma § 640.32 Collection of source... blood is intended for Plasma, Fresh Frozen Plasma, and Liquid Plasma, until the plasma is removed, the..., Center for Biologics Evaluations and Research. Whole blood intended for Platelet Rich Plasma must be...

21 CFR 640.32 - Collection of source material.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma § 640.32 Collection of source... blood is intended for Plasma, Fresh Frozen Plasma, and Liquid Plasma, until the plasma is removed, the..., Center for Biologics Evaluations and Research. Whole blood intended for Platelet Rich Plasma must be...

21 CFR 640.32 - Collection of source material.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma § 640.32 Collection of source... blood is intended for Plasma, Fresh Frozen Plasma, and Liquid Plasma, until the plasma is removed, the..., Center for Biologics Evaluations and Research. Whole blood intended for Platelet Rich Plasma must be...

21 CFR 640.32 - Collection of source material.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma § 640.32 Collection of source... blood is intended for Plasma, Fresh Frozen Plasma, and Liquid Plasma, until the plasma is removed, the..., Center for Biologics Evaluations and Research. Whole blood intended for Platelet Rich Plasma must be...

21 CFR 640.70 - Labeling.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.70 Labeling. (a) In addition to the... container of Source Plasma: (1) The proper name of the product. (2) The statement “Caution: For... size and type of print as the proper name. If the Source Plasma has a reactive screening test for...

21 CFR 640.76 - Products stored or shipped at unacceptable temperatures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640... provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, Source Plasma intended for manufacture into injectable... labeled as “Source Plasma Salvaged.” The label shall be revised before issuance, and appropriate records...

21 CFR 640.76 - Products stored or shipped at unacceptable temperatures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640... provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, Source Plasma intended for manufacture into injectable... labeled as “Source Plasma Salvaged.” The label shall be revised before issuance, and appropriate records...

21 CFR 640.70 - Labeling.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.70 Labeling. (a) In addition to the... container of Source Plasma: (1) The proper name of the product. (2) The statement “Caution: For... size and type of print as the proper name. If the Source Plasma has a reactive screening test for...

21 CFR 640.76 - Products stored or shipped at unacceptable temperatures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640... provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, Source Plasma intended for manufacture into injectable... labeled as “Source Plasma Salvaged.” The label shall be revised before issuance, and appropriate records...

21 CFR 640.76 - Products stored or shipped at unacceptable temperatures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640... provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, Source Plasma intended for manufacture into injectable... labeled as “Source Plasma Salvaged.” The label shall be revised before issuance, and appropriate records...

21 CFR 640.76 - Products stored or shipped at unacceptable temperatures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640... provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, Source Plasma intended for manufacture into injectable... labeled as “Source Plasma Salvaged.” The label shall be revised before issuance, and appropriate records...

21 CFR 640.70 - Labeling.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.70 Labeling. Link to an amendment published... information shall appear on the label affixed to each container of Source Plasma: (1) The proper name of the... shall follow the proper name in the same size and type of print as the proper name. If the Source Plasma...

21 CFR 640.68 - Processing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.68 Processing. (a) Sterile system. All administration and transfer sets inserted into blood containers used for processing Source Plasma intended for manufacturing into injectable or noninjectable products and all interior surfaces of plasma containers used for...

21 CFR 640.68 - Processing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.68 Processing. (a) Sterile system. All administration and transfer sets inserted into blood containers used for processing Source Plasma intended for manufacturing into injectable or noninjectable products and all interior surfaces of plasma containers used for...

21 CFR 640.68 - Processing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.68 Processing. (a) Sterile system. All administration and transfer sets inserted into blood containers used for processing Source Plasma intended for manufacturing into injectable or noninjectable products and all interior surfaces of plasma containers used for...

21 CFR 640.68 - Processing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.68 Processing. (a) Sterile system. All administration and transfer sets inserted into blood containers used for processing Source Plasma intended for manufacturing into injectable or noninjectable products and all interior surfaces of plasma containers used for...

21 CFR 640.67 - Laboratory tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.67 Laboratory tests. Each unit of Source Plasma shall be tested for evidence of infection due to communicable disease agents as required...

21 CFR 640.67 - Laboratory tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.67 Laboratory tests. Each unit of Source Plasma shall be tested for evidence of infection due to communicable disease agents as required...

21 CFR 640.67 - Laboratory tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.67 Laboratory tests. Each unit of Source Plasma shall be tested for evidence of infection due to communicable disease agents as required...

21 CFR 640.67 - Laboratory tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.67 Laboratory tests. Each unit of Source Plasma shall be tested for evidence of infection due to communicable disease agents as required...

21 CFR 640.67 - Laboratory tests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.67 Laboratory tests. Each unit of Source Plasma shall be tested for evidence of infection due to communicable disease agents as required...

21 CFR 640.72 - Records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.72 Records. (a) In addition to the... § 640.74(b)(2) are being met for Source Plasma intended for manufacture into injectable products. (2... volume or weight of plasma withdrawn from a donor need not be kept on the individual donor record...

21 CFR 640.72 - Records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.72 Records. (a) In addition to the... § 640.74(b)(2) are being met for Source Plasma intended for manufacture into injectable products. (2... volume or weight of plasma withdrawn from a donor need not be kept on the individual donor record...

21 CFR 640.69 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.69 General requirements. (a) Pooling. Two units of Source Plasma from the same donor may be pooled if such units are collected during... introduce a risk of contamination of the red blood cells and, for plasma intended for injectable products...

21 CFR 640.72 - Records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.72 Records. (a) In addition to the... § 640.74(b)(2) are being met for Source Plasma intended for manufacture into injectable products. (2... volume or weight of plasma withdrawn from a donor need not be kept on the individual donor record...

21 CFR 640.69 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.69 General requirements. (a) Pooling. Two units of Source Plasma from the same donor may be pooled if such units are collected during... introduce a risk of contamination of the red blood cells and, for plasma intended for injectable products...

21 CFR 640.69 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.69 General requirements. (a) Pooling. Two units of Source Plasma from the same donor may be pooled if such units are collected during... introduce a risk of contamination of the red blood cells and, for plasma intended for injectable products...

21 CFR 640.72 - Records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.72 Records. (a) In addition to the... § 640.74(b)(2) are being met for Source Plasma intended for manufacture into injectable products. (2... volume or weight of plasma withdrawn from a donor need not be kept on the individual donor record...

21 CFR 640.69 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.69 General requirements. (a) Pooling. Two units of Source Plasma from the same donor may be pooled if such units are collected during... introduce a risk of contamination of the red blood cells and, for plasma intended for injectable products...

21 CFR 640.72 - Records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.72 Records. (a) In addition to the... § 640.74(b)(2) are being met for Source Plasma intended for manufacture into injectable products. (2... volume or weight of plasma withdrawn from a donor need not be kept on the individual donor record...

A study of the effect on human mesenchymal stem cells of an atmospheric pressure plasma source driven by different voltage waveforms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laurita, R.; Alviano, F.; Marchionni, C.; Abruzzo, P. M.; Bolotta, A.; Bonsi, L.; Colombo, V.; Gherardi, M.; Liguori, A.; Ricci, F.; Rossi, M.; Stancampiano, A.; Tazzari, P. L.; Marini, M.

2016-09-01

The effect of an atmospheric pressure non-equilibrium plasma on human mesenchymal stem cells was investigated. A dielectric barrier discharge non-equilibrium plasma source driven by two different high-voltage pulsed generators was used and cell survival, senescence, proliferation, and differentiation were evaluated. Cells deprived of the culture medium and treated with nanosecond pulsed plasma showed a higher mortality rate, while higher survival and retention of proliferation were observed in cells treated with microsecond pulsed plasma in the presence of the culture medium. While a few treated cells showed the hallmarks of senescence, unexpected delayed apoptosis ensued in cells exposed to plasma-treated medium. The plasma treatment did not change the expression of OCT4, a marker of mesenchymal stem cell differentiation.

21 CFR 640.63 - Suitability of donor.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.63 Suitability of donor. (a) Method of determining. The suitability of a donor for Source Plasma shall be determined by a qualified... year. (2)(i) A donor who is to be immunized for the production of high-titer plasma shall be examined...

21 CFR 640.63 - Suitability of donor.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.63 Suitability of donor. (a) Method of determining. The suitability of a donor for Source Plasma shall be determined by a qualified... year. (2)(i) A donor who is to be immunized for the production of high-titer plasma shall be examined...

21 CFR 640.63 - Suitability of donor.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.63 Suitability of donor. (a) Method of determining. The suitability of a donor for Source Plasma shall be determined by a qualified... year. (2)(i) A donor who is to be immunized for the production of high-titer plasma shall be examined...

21 CFR 640.63 - Suitability of donor.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.63 Suitability of donor. (a) Method of determining. The suitability of a donor for Source Plasma shall be determined by a qualified... year. (2)(i) A donor who is to be immunized for the production of high-titer plasma shall be examined...

21 CFR 640.63 - Suitability of donor.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.63 Suitability of donor. (a) Method of determining. The suitability of a donor for Source Plasma shall be determined by a qualified... year. (2)(i) A donor who is to be immunized for the production of high-titer plasma shall be examined...

Human parvovirus PARV4 in plasma pools of Chinese origin.

PubMed

Ma, Y-Y; Guo, Y; Zhao, X; Wang, Z; Lv, M-M; Yan, Q-P; Zhang, J-G

2012-10-01

Human parvovirus 4 (PARV4) is present in blood and blood products. As the presence and levels of PARV4 in Chinese source plasma pools have never been determined, we implemented real-time quantitative PCR to investigate the presence of PARV4 in source plasma pools in China. Results showed that 26·15% (51/195) of lots tested positive for PARV4. The amounts of DNA ranged from 2·83 × 10(3) copies/ml to 2·35×10(7) copies/ml plasma. The high level of PARV4 in plasma pools may pose a potential risk to recipients. Further studies on the pathogenesis of PARV4 are urgently required. © 2012 The Author(s). Vox Sanguinis © 2012 International Society of Blood Transfusion.

Dietary cholesterol and plasma lipoprotein profiles: Randomized controlled trials

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Early work suggested that dietary cholesterol increased plasma total cholesterol concentrations in humans. Given the relationship between elevated plasma cholesterol concentrations and cardiovascular disease risk, dietary guidelines have consistently recommended limiting food sources of cholesterol....

New evidence that a large proportion of human blood plasma cell-free DNA is localized in exosomes

PubMed Central

Jiang, Chao; Krzyzanowski, Gary D.; Ryan, Wayne L.

2017-01-01

Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in blood is used as a source of genetic material for noninvasive prenatal and cancer diagnostic assays in clinical practice. Recently we have started a project for new biomarker discovery with a view to developing new noninvasive diagnostic assays. While reviewing literature, it was found that exosomes may be a rich source of biomarkers, because exosomes play an important role in human health and disease. While characterizing exosomes found in human blood plasma, we observed the presence of cfDNA in plasma exosomes. Plasma was obtained from blood drawn into K3EDTA tubes. Exosomes were isolated from cell-free plasma using a commercially available kit. Sizing and enumeration of exosomes were done using electron microscopy and NanoSight particle counter. NanoSight and confocal microscopy was used to demonstrate the association between dsDNA and exosomes. DNA extracted from plasma and exosomes was measured by a fluorometric method and a droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) method. Size of extracellular vesicles isolated from plasma was heterogeneous and showed a mean value of 92.6 nm and a mode 39.7 nm. A large proportion of extracellular vesicles isolated from plasma were identified as exosomes using a fluorescence probe specific for exosomes and three protein markers, Hsp70, CD9 and CD63, that are commonly used to identify exosome fraction. Fluorescence dye that stain dsDNA showed the association between exosomes and dsDNA. Plasma cfDNA concentration analysis showed more than 93% of amplifiable cfDNA in plasma is located in plasma exosomes. Storage of a blood sample showed significant increases in exosome count and exosome DNA concentration. This study provide evidence that a large proportion of plasma cfDNA is localized in exosomes. Exosome release from cells is a metabolic energy dependent process, thus suggesting active release of cfDNA from cells as a source of cfDNA in plasma. PMID:28850588

New evidence that a large proportion of human blood plasma cell-free DNA is localized in exosomes.

PubMed

Fernando, M Rohan; Jiang, Chao; Krzyzanowski, Gary D; Ryan, Wayne L

2017-01-01

Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in blood is used as a source of genetic material for noninvasive prenatal and cancer diagnostic assays in clinical practice. Recently we have started a project for new biomarker discovery with a view to developing new noninvasive diagnostic assays. While reviewing literature, it was found that exosomes may be a rich source of biomarkers, because exosomes play an important role in human health and disease. While characterizing exosomes found in human blood plasma, we observed the presence of cfDNA in plasma exosomes. Plasma was obtained from blood drawn into K3EDTA tubes. Exosomes were isolated from cell-free plasma using a commercially available kit. Sizing and enumeration of exosomes were done using electron microscopy and NanoSight particle counter. NanoSight and confocal microscopy was used to demonstrate the association between dsDNA and exosomes. DNA extracted from plasma and exosomes was measured by a fluorometric method and a droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) method. Size of extracellular vesicles isolated from plasma was heterogeneous and showed a mean value of 92.6 nm and a mode 39.7 nm. A large proportion of extracellular vesicles isolated from plasma were identified as exosomes using a fluorescence probe specific for exosomes and three protein markers, Hsp70, CD9 and CD63, that are commonly used to identify exosome fraction. Fluorescence dye that stain dsDNA showed the association between exosomes and dsDNA. Plasma cfDNA concentration analysis showed more than 93% of amplifiable cfDNA in plasma is located in plasma exosomes. Storage of a blood sample showed significant increases in exosome count and exosome DNA concentration. This study provide evidence that a large proportion of plasma cfDNA is localized in exosomes. Exosome release from cells is a metabolic energy dependent process, thus suggesting active release of cfDNA from cells as a source of cfDNA in plasma.

The comparison of DNA damage induced by micro DBD plasma and low energy electron for curing human diseases

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Yeunsoo

2015-09-01

It is well known that low energy electrons (LEE, especially below 10 eV) can generate DNA damage via indirect action named dissociative electron attachment (DEA). We can now explain some parts of the exact mechanism on DNA damage by LEE collision with direct ionization effect when cancer patients get the radiotherapy. It is kind of remarkable information in the field of radiation therapy. However, it is practically very difficult to directly apply this finding to human disease cure due to difficulty of LEE therapy actualization and request of further clinical studies. Recently, there is a novel challenge in plasma application, that is, how we can apply plasma technology to diagnosis and treatment of many serious diseases like cancer. Cold atmospheric pressure plasma (CAPP) is a very good source to apply to plasma medicine and bio-applications because of low temperature, low cost, and easy handling. Some scientists have already reported good results related to clinical plasma application. The purposes of this study are to further find out exact mechanisms of DNA damage by LEE at the molecular level, to verify new DNA damage like structural alteration on DNA subunits and to compare DNA damage by LEE and plasma source. We will keep expanding our study to DNA damage by plasma source to develop plasma-based new medical and biological applications. We will show some recent results, DNA damage by LEE and non-thermal plasma.

Plasmas for medicine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

von Woedtke, Th.; Reuter, S.; Masur, K.; Weltmann, K.-D.

2013-09-01

Plasma medicine is an innovative and emerging field combining plasma physics, life science and clinical medicine. In a more general perspective, medical application of physical plasma can be subdivided into two principal approaches. (i) “Indirect” use of plasma-based or plasma-supplemented techniques to treat surfaces, materials or devices to realize specific qualities for subsequent special medical applications, and (ii) application of physical plasma on or in the human (or animal) body to realize therapeutic effects based on direct interaction of plasma with living tissue. The field of plasma applications for the treatment of medical materials or devices is intensively researched and partially well established for several years. However, plasma medicine in the sense of its actual definition as a new field of research focuses on the use of plasma technology in the treatment of living cells, tissues, and organs. Therefore, the aim of the new research field of plasma medicine is the exploitation of a much more differentiated interaction of specific plasma components with specific structural as well as functional elements or functionalities of living cells. This interaction can possibly lead either to stimulation or inhibition of cellular function and be finally used for therapeutic purposes. During recent years a broad spectrum of different plasma sources with various names dedicated for biomedical applications has been reported. So far, research activities were mainly focused on barrier discharges and plasma jets working at atmospheric pressure. Most efforts to realize plasma application directly on or in the human (or animal) body for medical purposes is concentrated on the broad field of dermatology including wound healing, but also includes cancer treatment, endoscopy, or dentistry. Despite the fact that the field of plasma medicine is very young and until now mostly in an empirical stage of development yet, there are first indicators of its enormous economic potential. This ambivalent situation fundamentally requires a responsible use of plasma sources, which are specifically designated for biomedical applications. To enable physicians as well as life scientists to decide whether a given plasma source is really suitable for medical applications or biological experiments, a meaningful and mandatory spectrum of indicators has to be compiled to allow for a basic estimation of the potential of this plasma source.

Isolation of biologically-active exosomes from human plasma.

PubMed

Muller, Laurent; Hong, Chang-Sook; Stolz, Donna B; Watkins, Simon C; Whiteside, Theresa L

2014-09-01

Effects of exosomes present in human plasma on immune cells have not been examined in detail. Immunological studies with plasma-derived exosomes require their isolation by procedures involving ultracentrifugation. These procedures were largely developed using supernatants of cultured cells. To test biologic activities of plasma-derived exosomes, methods are necessary that ensure adequate recovery of exosome fractions free of contaminating larger vesicles, cell fragments and protein/nucleic acid aggregates. Here, an optimized method for exosome isolation from human plasma/serum specimens of normal controls (NC) or cancer patients and its advantages and pitfalls are described. To remove undesirable plasma-contaminating components, ultrafiltration of differentially-centrifuged plasma/serum followed by size-exclusion chromatography prior to ultracentrifugation facilitated the removal of contaminants. Plasma or serum was equally acceptable as a source of exosomes based on the recovered protein levels (in μg protein/mL plasma) and TEM image quality. Centrifugation on sucrose density gradients led to large exosome losses. Fresh plasma was the best source of morphologically-intact exosomes, while the use of frozen/thawed plasma decreased exosome purity but not their biologic activity. Treatments of frozen plasma with DNAse, RNAse or hyaluronidase did not improve exosome purity and are not recommended. Cancer patients' plasma consistently yielded more isolated exosomes than did NCs' plasma. Cancer patients' exosomes also mediated higher immune suppression as evidenced by decreased CD69 expression on responder CD4+ T effector cells. Thus, the described procedure yields biologically-active, morphologically-intact exosomes that have reasonably good purity without large protein losses and can be used for immunological, biomarker and other studies. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Complex Exogenous RNA Spectra in Human Plasma: An Interface with Human Gut Biota?

PubMed Central

Wang, Kai; Li, Hong; Yuan, Yue; Etheridge, Alton; Zhou, Yong; Huang, David; Wilmes, Paul; Galas, David

2012-01-01

Human plasma has long been a rich source for biomarker discovery. It has recently become clear that plasma RNA molecules, such as microRNA, in addition to proteins are common and can serve as biomarkers. Surveying human plasma for microRNA biomarkers using next generation sequencing technology, we observed that a significant fraction of the circulating RNA appear to originate from exogenous species. With careful analysis of sequence error statistics and other controls, we demonstrated that there is a wide range of RNA from many different organisms, including bacteria and fungi as well as from other species. These RNAs may be associated with protein, lipid or other molecules protecting them from RNase activity in plasma. Some of these RNAs are detected in intracellular complexes and may be able to influence cellular activities under in vitro conditions. These findings raise the possibility that plasma RNAs of exogenous origin may serve as signaling molecules mediating for example the human-microbiome interaction and may affect and/or indicate the state of human health. PMID:23251414

Safflower oil consumption does not increase plasma conjugated linoleic acid concentrations in humans.

PubMed

Herbel, B K; McGuire, M K; McGuire, M A; Shultz, T D

1998-02-01

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is a mixture of positional and geometric isomers of linoleic acid (LA) with conjugated double bonds. CLA has anticarcinogenic properties and has been identified in human tissues, dairy products, meats, and certain vegetable oils. A variety of animal products are good sources of CLA, but plant oils contain much less. However, plant oils are a rich source of LA, which may be isomerized to CLA by intestinal microorganisms in humans. To investigate the effect of triacylglycerol-esterified LA consumption on plasma concentrations of esterified CLA in total lipids, a dietary intervention (6 wk) was conducted with six men and six women. During the intervention period a salad dressing containing 21 g safflower oil providing 16 g LA/d was added to the subjects' daily diets. Three-day diet records and fasting blood were obtained initially and during dietary and postdietary intervention periods. Although LA intake increased significantly during the dietary intervention, plasma CLA concentrations were not affected. Plasma total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol concentrations were significantly lower after addition of safflower oil to the diet. In summary, consumption of triacylglycerol-esterified LA in safflower oil did not increase plasma concentrations of esterified CLA in total lipids.

Which is safer source plasma for manufacturing in China: apheresis plasma or recovered plasma?

PubMed

Liu, Yu; Li, Changqing; Wang, Ya; Zhang, Yan; Wu, Binting; Ke, Ling; Xu, Min; Liu, Gui; Liu, Zhong

2016-05-01

In most countries, the plasma for derivative production includes two types of plasma, apheresis plasma (AP) and recovered plasma (RP). However, the plasma recovered from whole blood is not permitted for manufacture in China. Because of the lack of source plasma and the surplus of RP, the Chinese government is considering allowing RP as an equivalent source for the production of plasma derivatives. It is known that human blood can be contaminated by various infectious agents. The objective of the study was to evaluate if infectious risk would increase by enacting this policy. The samples from the two types of blood donors from January 1 to December 31, 2013, were collected. Supplementary testing was conducted and the residual risk (RR) of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus, and hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the two types of blood donors and donations were calculated through the incidence-window period model. Prevalence of the markers of hepatitis E virus, hepatitis A virus, severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome bunyavirus, cytomegalovirus, B19, and West Nile virus was calculated. No significant difference was found in the RR of the three pathogens in the two types of blood donors. However, after the quarantine period, the RR of HCV and HIV in AP was significantly lower than that in RP. A quarantine period of 2 years will make the infectious risk of RP not significantly different than that of AP. Our data demonstrate that allowing RP to be used for the manufacture of plasma derivatives will not increase its infectious disease risk if coupled with a 2-year inventory hold. © 2016 AABB.

Microwave digestion preparation and ICP determination of boron in human plasma

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ferrando, A. A.; Green, N. R.; Barnes, K. W.; Woodward, B.

1993-01-01

A microwave digestion procedure, followed by Inductively Coupled Argon Plasma Spectroscopy, is described for the determination of boron (B) in human plasma. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) currently does not certify the concentration of B in any substance. The NIST citrus leaves 1572 (CL) Standard Reference Material (SRM) and wheat flour 1567a (WF) were chosen to determine the efficacy of digestion. CL and WF values compare favorably to those obtained from an open-vessel, wet digestion followed by ICP, and by neutron activation and mass spectrometric measurements. Plasma samples were oxidized by doubled-distilled ultrapure HNO3 in 120 mL PFA Teflon vessels. An MDS-81D microwave digestion procedure allows for rapid and relatively precise determination of B in human plasma, while limiting handling hazards and sources of contamination.

The hairline plasma: An intermittent negative dc-corona discharge at atmospheric pressure for plasma medical applications

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bussiahn, R.; Brandenburg, R.; Gerling, T.

2010-04-05

A cold atmospheric pressure plasma source, called hairline plasma, for biological and medical applications has been developed. Using the physical effect of the negative dc corona discharge, a nanosecond pulsed microplasma has been created. The device produces a very thin (dapprox30 mum) plasma filament with a length of up to 1.5 cm. Due to this geometrical parameters this plasma is particularly suitable for the treatment of microscopic cavities. The low plasma temperature allows to treat the human skin without any heating or painful irritation.

Characterization of the Low-Molecular-Weight Human Plasma Peptidome.

PubMed

Greening, David W; Simpson, Richard J

2017-01-01

The human plasma proteome represents an important secreted sub-proteome. Proteomic analysis of blood plasma with mass spectrometry is a challenging task. The high complexity and wide dynamic range of proteins as well as the presence of several proteins at very high concentrations complicate the profiling of the human plasma proteome. The peptidome (or low-molecular-weight fraction, LMF) of the human plasma proteome is an invaluable source of biological information, especially in the context of identifying plasma-based markers of disease. Peptides are generated by active synthesis and proteolytic processing, often yielding proteolytic fragments that mediate a variety of physiological and pathological functions. As such, degradomic studies, investigating cleavage products via peptidomics and top-down proteomics in particular, have warranted significant research interest. However, due to their molecular weight, abundance, and solubility, issues with identifying specific cleavage sites and coverage of peptide fragments remain challenging. Peptidomics is currently focused toward comprehensively studying peptides cleaved from precursor proteins by endogenous proteases. This protocol outlines a standardized rapid and reproducible procedure for peptidomic profiling of human plasma using centrifugal ultrafiltration and mass spectrometry. Ultrafiltration is a convective process that uses anisotropic semipermeable membranes to separate macromolecular species on the basis of size. We have optimized centrifugal ultrafiltration (cellulose triacetate membrane) for plasma fractionation with respect to buffer and solvent composition, centrifugal force, duration, and temperature to facilitate recovery >95% and enrichment of the human plasma peptidome. This method serves as a comprehensive and facile process to enrich and identify a key, underrepresented sub-proteome of human blood plasma.

21 CFR 610.12 - Sterility.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... Factor, Platelets, Red Blood Cells, Plasma, Source Plasma, Smallpox Vaccine, Reagent Red Blood Cells, Anti-Human Globulin, and Blood Grouping Reagents. (2) A manufacturer is not required to comply with the... the test is capable of reliably and consistently detecting the presence of viable contaminating...

21 CFR 610.12 - Sterility.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... Factor, Platelets, Red Blood Cells, Plasma, Source Plasma, Smallpox Vaccine, Reagent Red Blood Cells, Anti-Human Globulin, and Blood Grouping Reagents. (2) A manufacturer is not required to comply with the... the test is capable of reliably and consistently detecting the presence of viable contaminating...

Diisopropylfluorophosphate-sensitive aryl acylamidase activity of fatty acid free human serum albumin.

PubMed

Manoharan, Indumathi; Boopathy, Rathnam

2006-08-15

Butyrylcholinesterase in human plasma and acetylcholinesterase in human red blood cells have aryl acylamidase activity toward o-nitroacetanilide, hydrolyzing the amide bond to produce o-nitroaniline and acetate. People with a genetic variant of butyrylcholinesterase that had no detectable activity with butyrylthiocholine, nevertheless had aryl acylamidase activity in their plasma. To determine the source of this aryl acylamidase activity we tested fatty acid free human albumin for activity. We found that albumin had aryl acylacylamidase activity and that this activity was inhibited by diisopropylfluorophosphate. Since the esterase activity of albumin is also inhibited by diisopropylfluorophosphate, and since it is known that diisopropylfluorophosphate covalently binds to Tyr 411 of human albumin, we conclude that the active site for aryl acylamidase activity of albumin is Tyr 411. Albumin accounts for about 10% of the aryl acylamidase activity in human plasma.

Comprehensive Analysis of Low-Molecular-Weight Human Plasma Proteome Using Top-Down Mass Spectrometry.

PubMed

Cheon, Dong Huey; Nam, Eun Ji; Park, Kyu Hyung; Woo, Se Joon; Lee, Hye Jin; Kim, Hee Cheol; Yang, Eun Gyeong; Lee, Cheolju; Lee, Ji Eun

2016-01-04

While human plasma serves as a great source for disease diagnosis, low-molecular-weight (LMW) proteome (<30 kDa) has been shown to contain a rich source of diagnostic biomarkers. Here we employ top-down mass spectrometry to analyze the LMW proteoforms present in four types of human plasma samples pooled from three healthy controls (HCs) without immunoaffinity depletion and with depletion of the top two, six, and seven high-abundance proteins. The LMW proteoforms were first fractionated based on molecular weight using gel-eluted liquid fraction entrapment electrophoresis (GELFrEE). Then, the GELFrEE fractions containing up to 30 kDa were subjected to nanocapillary-LC-MS/MS, and the high-resolution MS and MS/MS data were processed using ProSightPC 3.0. As a result, a total of 442 LMW proteins and cleaved products, including those with post-translational modifications and single amino acid variations, were identified. From additional comparative analysis of plasma samples without immunoaffinity depletion between HCs and colorectal cancer (CRC) patients via top-down approach, tens of LMW proteoforms, including platelet factor 4, were found to show >1.5-fold changes between the plasma samples of HCs and CRC patients, and six of the LMW proteins were verified by Western blot analysis.

Protein source and choice of anticoagulant decisively affect nanoparticle protein corona and cellular uptake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schöttler, S.; Klein, Katja; Landfester, K.; Mailänder, V.

2016-03-01

Protein adsorption on nanoparticles has been a focus of the field of nanocarrier research in the past few years and more and more papers are dealing with increasingly detailed lists of proteins adsorbed to a plethora of nanocarriers. While there is an urgent need to understand the influence of this protein corona on nanocarriers' interactions with cells the strong impact of the protein source on corona formation and the consequence for interaction with different cell types are factors that are regularly neglected, but should be taken into account for a meaningful analysis. In this study, the importance of the choice of protein source used for in vitro protein corona analysis is concisely investigated. Major and decisive differences in cellular uptake of a polystyrene nanoparticle incubated in fetal bovine serum, human serum, human citrate and heparin plasma are reported. Furthermore, the protein compositions are determined for coronas formed in the respective incubation media. A strong influence of heparin, which is used as an anticoagulant for plasma generation, on cell interaction is demonstrated. While heparin enhances the uptake into macrophages, it prevents internalization into HeLa cells. Taken together we can give the recommendation that human plasma anticoagulated with citrate seems to give the most relevant results for in vitro studies of nanoparticle uptake.Protein adsorption on nanoparticles has been a focus of the field of nanocarrier research in the past few years and more and more papers are dealing with increasingly detailed lists of proteins adsorbed to a plethora of nanocarriers. While there is an urgent need to understand the influence of this protein corona on nanocarriers' interactions with cells the strong impact of the protein source on corona formation and the consequence for interaction with different cell types are factors that are regularly neglected, but should be taken into account for a meaningful analysis. In this study, the importance of the choice of protein source used for in vitro protein corona analysis is concisely investigated. Major and decisive differences in cellular uptake of a polystyrene nanoparticle incubated in fetal bovine serum, human serum, human citrate and heparin plasma are reported. Furthermore, the protein compositions are determined for coronas formed in the respective incubation media. A strong influence of heparin, which is used as an anticoagulant for plasma generation, on cell interaction is demonstrated. While heparin enhances the uptake into macrophages, it prevents internalization into HeLa cells. Taken together we can give the recommendation that human plasma anticoagulated with citrate seems to give the most relevant results for in vitro studies of nanoparticle uptake. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Complete list of proteins identified by LC-MS. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr08196c

Development of plasma-on-chip: Plasma treatment for individual cells cultured in media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumagai, Shinya; Chang, Chun-Yao; Jeong, Jonghyeon; Kobayashi, Mime; Shimizu, Tetsuji; Sasaki, Minoru

2016-01-01

A device consisting of Si microwells and microplasma sources has been fabricated for plasma treatment of individual cells cultured in media. We named the device plasma-on-chip. The microwells have through-holes at the bottom where gas-liquid interfaces form when they are filled with media containing biological samples. The microplasma sources, which supply reactive species, are located on the back of each microwell. Through the gas-liquid interface, the reactive species are supplied to the cells. Chlorella cells were used to demonstrate the feasibility of the device and after three minutes of plasma treatment, the fluorescence intensity of Chlorella cells appeared to be decreased. Optical emission spectroscopy identified O and OH radicals in the plasma, which can affect the cells. In the analysis of biological samples such as human cells or tissues, this device raises the possibility of revealing the mechanisms of plasma medicine in more detail.

Exploring the human seminal plasma proteome: an unexplored gold mine of biomarker for male infertility and male reproduction disorder.

PubMed

Gilany, Kambiz; Minai-Tehrani, Arash; Savadi-Shiraz, Elham; Rezadoost, Hassan; Lakpour, Niknam

2015-01-01

The human seminal fluid is a complex body fluid. It is not known how many proteins are expressed in the seminal plasma; however in analog with the blood it is possible up to 10,000 proteins are expressed in the seminal plasma. The human seminal fluid is a rich source of potential biomarkers for male infertility and reproduction disorder. In this review, the ongoing list of proteins identified from the human seminal fluid was collected. To date, 4188 redundant proteins of the seminal fluid are identified using different proteomics technology, including 2-DE, SDS-PAGE-LC-MS/MS, MudPIT. However, this was reduced to a database of 2168 non-redundant protein using UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot reviewed database. The core concept of proteome were analyzed including pI, MW, Amino Acids, Chromosome and PTM distribution in the human seminal plasma proteome. Additionally, the biological process, molecular function and KEGG pathway were investigated using DAVID software. Finally, the biomarker identified in different male reproductive system disorder was investigated using proteomics platforms so far. In this study, an attempt was made to update the human seminal plasma proteome database. Our finding showed that human seminal plasma studies used to date seem to have converged on a set of proteins that are repeatedly identified in many studies and that represent only a small fraction of the entire human seminal plasma proteome.

Characterization and localization of cysteine-rich secretory protein 3 (CRISP-3) in the human male reproductive tract.

PubMed

Udby, Lene; Bjartell, Anders; Malm, Johan; Egesten, Arne; Lundwall, Ake; Cowland, Jack B; Borregaard, Niels; Kjeldsen, Lars

2005-01-01

Mammalian members of the cysteine-rich secretory protein (CRISP) family are expressed predominantly in the male reproductive tract and are implicated in the process of reproduction from spermiogenesis, posttesticular sperm maturation, and capacitation to oocyte-sperm fusion, and possibly also penetration of the zona pellucida. Rodents express only 2 CRISPs (CRISP-1 and CRISP-2) in their male reproductive system, whereas humans and horses express an additional third member named CRISP-3. We have previously demonstrated that this protein is present in human seminal plasma as well as in other exocrine secretions, in blood plasma, and in neutrophilic granulocytes. To characterize the protein in seminal plasma and localize the production of CRISP-3 in the human male reproductive tract, we performed immunoblotting and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay measurements of seminal plasma and immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization of tissue specimens. We were able to show that human CRISP-3 is a quantitatively minor seminal plasma protein not associated with prostasomes. Furthermore, CRISP-3 expression was found in the secretory epithelium throughout the male genital tract, with particularly high expression in the cauda epididymis and ampulla vas deferens. Examination of seminal plasma from vasectomized males indicates that organs downstream of the epididymis are probably the major sources of seminal plasma CRISP-3.

Susceptibility of Mice to Trypanosoma evansi Treated with Human Plasma Containing Different Concentrations of Apolipoprotein L-1

PubMed Central

Fanfa, Vinicius R.; Otto, Mateus A.; Gressler, Lucas T.; Tavares, Kaio C.S.; Lazzarotto, Cícera R.; Tonin, Alexandre A.; Miletti, Luiz C.; Duarte, Marta M.M.F.; Monteiro, Silvia G.

2011-01-01

The aim of this study was to test the susceptibility of mice to Trypanosoma evansi treated with human plasma containing different concentrations of apolipoprotein L-1 (APOL1). For this experiment, a strain of T. evansi and human plasma (plasmas 1, 2, and 3) from 3 adult males clinically healthy were used. In vivo test used 50 mice divided in 5 groups (A to E) with 10 animals in each group. Animals of groups B to E were infected, and then treated with 0.2 ml of human plasma in the following outline: negative control (A), positive control (B), treatment with plasma 1 (C), treatment with plasma 2 (D), and treatment with plasma 3 (E). Mice treated with human plasma showed an increase in longevity of 40.9±0.3 (C), 20±9.0 (D) and 35.6±9.3 (E) days compared to the control group (B) which was 4.3±0.5 days. The number of surviving mice and free of the parasite (blood smear and PCR negative) at the end of the experiment was 90%, 0%, and 60% for groups C, D, and E, respectively. The quantification of APOL1 was performed due to the large difference in the treatments that differed in the source plasma. In plasmas 1, 2, and 3 was detected the concentration of 194, 99, and 115 mg/dl of APOL1, respectively. However, we believe that this difference in the treatment efficiency is related to the level of APOL1 in plasmas. PMID:22355213

Statistical Analysis of Variation in the Human Plasma Proteome

DOE PAGES

Corzett, Todd H.; Fodor, Imola K.; Choi, Megan W.; ...

2010-01-01

Quantifying the variation in the human plasma proteome is an essential prerequisite for disease-specific biomarker detection. We report here on the longitudinal and individual variation in human plasma characterized by two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis (2-D DIGE) using plasma samples from eleven healthy subjects collected three times over a two week period. Fixed-effects modeling was used to remove dye and gel variability. Mixed-effects modeling was then used to quantitate the sources of proteomic variation. The subject-to-subject variation represented the largest variance component, while the time-within-subject variation was comparable to the experimental variation found in a previous technical variability study where onemore » human plasma sample was processed eight times in parallel and each was then analyzed by 2-D DIGE in triplicate. Here, 21 protein spots had larger than 50% CV, suggesting that these proteins may not be appropriate as biomarkers and should be carefully scrutinized in future studies. Seventy-eight protein spots showing differential protein levels between different individuals or individual collections were identified by mass spectrometry and further characterized using hierarchical clustering. The results present a first step toward understanding the complexity of longitudinal and individual variation in the human plasma proteome, and provide a baseline for improved biomarker discovery.« less

Statistical analysis of variation in the human plasma proteome.

PubMed

Corzett, Todd H; Fodor, Imola K; Choi, Megan W; Walsworth, Vicki L; Turteltaub, Kenneth W; McCutchen-Maloney, Sandra L; Chromy, Brett A

2010-01-01

Quantifying the variation in the human plasma proteome is an essential prerequisite for disease-specific biomarker detection. We report here on the longitudinal and individual variation in human plasma characterized by two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis (2-D DIGE) using plasma samples from eleven healthy subjects collected three times over a two week period. Fixed-effects modeling was used to remove dye and gel variability. Mixed-effects modeling was then used to quantitate the sources of proteomic variation. The subject-to-subject variation represented the largest variance component, while the time-within-subject variation was comparable to the experimental variation found in a previous technical variability study where one human plasma sample was processed eight times in parallel and each was then analyzed by 2-D DIGE in triplicate. Here, 21 protein spots had larger than 50% CV, suggesting that these proteins may not be appropriate as biomarkers and should be carefully scrutinized in future studies. Seventy-eight protein spots showing differential protein levels between different individuals or individual collections were identified by mass spectrometry and further characterized using hierarchical clustering. The results present a first step toward understanding the complexity of longitudinal and individual variation in the human plasma proteome, and provide a baseline for improved biomarker discovery.

Partitioning of human and sheep forms of the pathogenic prion protein during the purification of therapeutic proteins from human plasma.

PubMed

Stenland, Christopher J; Lee, Douglas C; Brown, Paul; Petteway, Stephen R; Rubenstein, Richard

2002-11-01

Therapeutic proteins derived from human plasma and other biologic sources have demonstrated an excellent safety record relative to the potential threat of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) transmission. Previously, hamster-adapted scrapie was used as a model agent to assess TSE clearance in purification steps leading to the isolation of biopharmaceutical proteins. The current study investigated the validity of hamster scrapie as a model for human TSE clearance studies. The partitioning of the pathogenic forms of the prion protein associated with human variant CJD (PrP(vCJD)), human sporadic CJD (PrP(sCJD)) and Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker (PrP(GSS)) syndrome was compared to the partitioning of hamster scrapie (PrP(Sc)) in three plasma protein purification steps. Sheep scrapie (PrP(Sc)) was similarly evaluated. The starting materials for three plasma protein purification steps, cryoseparation, 3 percent PEG separation, and 11.5 percent PEG separation, were spiked with brain homogenates containing human PrP(vCJD), human PrP(sCJD), human PrP(GSS), sheep PrP(Sc), and hamster 263K PrP(Sc). The partitioning of the pathogenic form of the PrP was analyzed. Clearance of the pathogenic form of the PrP was measured relative to the effluent fraction. Regardless of the source of the pathogenic prion, clearance was similar to hamster PrP(Sc). A nominal amount of clearance (approx., 1 log), an intermediate amount of clearance (approx., 2 log), and a substantial amount of clearance (> or = 3 log) were observed for the cryoseparation, 3 percent PEG separation, and 11.5 percent PEG separation steps, respectively. In the latter step, no PrP was detected in the effluents. These data demonstrate that human prions, including vCJD prions, can be removed during the purification of human therapeutic proteins and indicate that partitioning of human prions is similar to that observed in the hamster scrapie model.

A Survey of Exposure Level and Lifestyle Factors for Perfluorooctanoate and Perfluorooctane Sulfonate in Human Plasma from Selected Residents in Korea

PubMed Central

Eom, Jinhee; Choi, Jaeyeon; Kim, Jiye; Kim, Yunje

2014-01-01

Following few decades of commercial use, perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) have been found in human blood and serum. We determined the amounts of PFOA and PFOS in human plasma (n = 183) and the effects of multiple uses of food-contact materials and smoking habits and alcohol consumption using liquid chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC/TOF-MS). For the paper cups, the PFOA level in the plasma of the heavy user group was 1.37 times higher than that of the light user group. However, no association between the effects of multiple uses of food-contact materials and the plasma levels of PFOA and PFOS was found, except for paper cups. Active smokers had lower plasma levels of PFOA and PFOS than non-smokers. We show that multiple uses of food-contact materials do not appear to be a significant source of PFOA and PFOS. PMID:25032739

Differential proteomics of human seminal plasma: A potential target for searching male infertility marker proteins.

PubMed

Tomar, Anil Kumar; Sooch, Balwinder Singh; Singh, Sarman; Yadav, Savita

2012-04-01

The clinical fertility tests, available in the market, fail to define the exact cause of male infertility in almost half of the cases and point toward a crucial need of developing better ways of infertility investigations. The protein biomarkers may help us toward better understanding of unknown cases of male infertility that, in turn, can guide us to find better therapeutic solutions. Many clinical attempts have been made to identify biomarkers of male infertility in sperm proteome but only few studies have targeted seminal plasma. Human seminal plasma is a rich source of proteins that are essentially required for development of sperm and successful fertilization. This viewpoint article highlights the importance of human seminal plasma proteome in reproductive physiology and suggests that differential proteomics integrated with functional analysis may help us in searching potential biomarkers of male infertility. © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

75 FR 75809 - Guidance for Industry: Use of Serological Tests To Reduce the Risk of Transmission of Trypanosoma...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-12-06

... of transmission of T. cruzi infection by detecting antibodies to T. cruzi in plasma and serum samples from individual human donors. The guidance document does not apply to the collection of source plasma...) for review and clearance under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. DATES: Submit either electronic or...

Advanced Plasma Propulsion for Human Missions to Jupiter

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Donahue, Benjamin B.; Pearson, J. Boise

1999-01-01

This paper will briefly identify a promising fusion plasma power source, which when coupled with a promising electric thruster technology would provide for an efficient interplanetary transfer craft suitable to a 4 year round trip mission to the Jovian system. An advanced, nearly radiation free Inertial Electrostatic Confinement scheme for containing fusion plasma was judged as offering potential for delivering the performance and operational benefits needed for such high energy human expedition missions, without requiring heavy superconducting magnets for containment of the fusion plasma. Once the Jovian transfer stage has matched the heliocentric velocity of Jupiter, the energy requirements for excursions to its outer satellites (Callisto, Ganymede and Europa) by smaller excursion craft are not prohibitive. The overall propulsion, power and thruster system is briefly described and a preliminary vehicle mass statement is presented.

Postbooster Antibodies from Humans as Source of Diphtheria Antitoxin

PubMed Central

Avila-Alonso, Ana; González-Rivera, Milagros; Tamayo, Eduardo; Eiros, Jose María; Almansa, Raquel

2016-01-01

Diphtheria antitoxin for therapeutic use is in limited supply. A potential source might be affinity-purified antibodies originally derived from plasma of adults who received a booster dose of a vaccine containing diphtheria toxoid. These antibodies might be useful for treating even severe cases of diphtheria. PMID:27314309

Therapeutic plasma concentrations of epsilon aminocaproic acid and tranexamic acid in horses.

PubMed

Fletcher, D J; Brainard, B M; Epstein, K; Radcliffe, R; Divers, T

2013-01-01

Antifibrinolytic drugs such as epsilon aminocaproic acid (EACA) and tranexamic acid (TEA) are used to treat various bleeding disorders in horses. Although horses are hypofibrinolytic compared to humans, dosing schemes have been derived from pharmacokinetic studies targeting plasma concentrations in humans. We hypothesized therapeutic plasma concentrations of antifibrinolytic drugs in horses would be significantly lower than in humans. Our objective was to use thromboleastography (TEG) and an in vitro model of hyperfibrinolysis to predict therapeutic concentrations of EACA and TEA in horses and humans. Citrated plasma collected from 24 random source clinically healthy research horses. Commercial pooled human citrated plasma with normal coagulation parameters was purchased. Minimum tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) concentration to induce complete fibrinolysis within 10 minutes was determined using serial dilutions of tPA in equine plasma. Results used to create an in vitro hyperfibrinolysis model with equine and human citrated plasma, and the minimum concentrations of EACA and TEA required to completely inhibit fibrinolysis for 30 minutes (estimated therapeutic concentrations) determined using serial dilutions of the drugs. Estimated therapeutic concentrations of EACA and TEA were significantly lower in horses (5.82; 95% CI 3.77-7.86 μg/mL and 0.512; 95% CI 0.277-0.748 μg/mL) than in humans (113.2; 95% CI 95.8-130.6 μg/mL and 11.4; 95% CI 8.62-14.1 μg/mL). Current dosing schemes for EACA and TEA in horses may be as much as 20× higher than necessary, potentially increasing cost of treatment and risk of adverse effects. Copyright © 2013 by the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.

Plasma medicine—current state of research and medical application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weltmann, K.-D.; von Woedtke, Th

2017-01-01

Plasma medicine means the direct application of cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) on or in the human body for therapeutic purposes. Further, the field interacts strongly with results gained for biological decontamination. Experimental research as well as first practical application is realized using two basic principles of CAP sources: dielectric barrier discharges (DBD) and atmospheric pressure plasma jets (APPJ). Originating from the fundamental insights that the biological effects of CAP are most probably caused by changes of the liquid environment of cells, and are dominated by reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS, RNS), basic mechanisms of biological plasma activity are identified. It was demonstrated that there is no increased risk of cold plasma application and, above all, there are no indications for genotoxic effects. The most important biological effects of cold atmospheric pressure plasma were identified: (1) inactivation of a broad spectrum of microorganisms including multidrug resistant ones; (2) stimulation of cell proliferation and tissue regeneration with lower plasma treatment intensity (treatment time); (3) inactivation of cells by initialization of programmed cell death (apoptosis) with higher plasma treatment intensity (treatment time). In recent years, the main focus of clinical applications was in the field of wound healing and treatment of infective skin diseases. First CAP sources are CE-certified as medical devices now which is the main precondition to start the introduction of plasma medicine into clinical reality. Plasma application in dentistry and, above all, CAP use for cancer treatment are becoming more and more important research fields in plasma medicine. A further in-depth knowledge of control and adaptation of plasma parameters and plasma geometries is needed to obtain suitable and reliable plasma sources for the different therapeutic indications and to open up new fields of medical application.

The use of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) for the determination of toxic and essential elements in different types of food samples

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Voica, C.; Dehelean, A.; Kovacs, M. H.

2012-02-01

Food is the primary source of essential elements for humans and it is an important source of exposure to toxic elements. In this context, levels of essential and toxic elements must be determined routinely in consumed food products. The content of trace elements (As, Pb, Cu, Cd, Zn, Sn, Hg) in different types of food samples (e.g. rice, bread, sugar, cheese, milk, butter, wheat, coffee, chocolate, biscuits pasta, etc.) was determined, using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Trace element contents in some foods were higher than maximum permissible levels of toxic metals in human food (Cd in bread, Zn in cheese, Cu in coffee, Hg in carrots and peppers).

Low-Molecular-Weight Plasma Proteome Analysis Using Top-Down Mass Spectrometry.

PubMed

Cheon, Dong Huey; Yang, Eun Gyeong; Lee, Cheolju; Lee, Ji Eun

2017-01-01

While human plasma has a wealth of diagnostic information regarding the state of the human body in heath and disease, low molecular weight (LMW) proteome (<30 kDa) has been shown to contain a rich source of diagnostic biomarkers. Here we describe a protocol for top-down proteomic analysis to identify and characterize the LMW proteoforms present in four types of human plasma samples without immunoaffinity depletion and with depletion of the top two, six, and seven high-abundance proteins. Each type of plasma sample was first fractionated based on molecular weight using gel-eluted liquid fraction entrapment electrophoresis (GELFrEE). Then, the GELFrEE fractions containing up to 30 kDa were subjected to nanocapillary-LC-MS/MS, and the high-resolution MS and MS/MS data were processed using ProSightPC software. As a result, a total of 442 LMW proteins and cleaved products, including those with posttranslational modifications (PTMs) and single amino acid variations (SAAVs), were identified with a threshold E-value of 1 × 10 -4 from the four types of plasma samples.

Antimicrobial Efficacy of Two Surface Barrier Discharges with Air Plasma against In Vitro Biofilms

PubMed Central

Matthes, Rutger; Bender, Claudia; Schlüter, Rabea; Koban, Ina; Bussiahn, René; Reuter, Stephan; Lademann, Jürgen; Weltmann, Klaus-Dieter; Kramer, Axel

2013-01-01

The treatment of infected wounds is one possible therapeutic aspect of plasma medicine. Chronic wounds are often associated with microbial biofilms which limit the efficacy of antiseptics. The present study investigates two different surface barrier discharges with air plasma to compare their efficacy against microbial biofilms with chlorhexidine digluconate solution (CHX) as representative of an important antibiofilm antiseptic. Pseudomonas aeruginosa SG81 and Staphylococcus epidermidis RP62A were cultivated on polycarbonate discs. The biofilms were treated for 30, 60, 150, 300 or 600 s with plasma or for 600 s with 0.1% CHX, respectively. After treatment, biofilms were dispensed by ultrasound and the antimicrobial effects were determined as difference in the number of the colony forming units by microbial culture. A high antimicrobial efficacy on biofilms of both plasma sources in comparison to CHX treatment was shown. The efficacy differs between the used strains and plasma sources. For illustration, the biofilms were examined under a scanning electron microscope before and after treatment. Additionally, cytotoxicity was determined by the MTT (3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay with L929 mouse fibroblast cell line. The cell toxicity of the used plasma limits its applicability on human tissue to maximally 150 s. The emitted UV irradiance was measured to estimate whether UV could limit the application on human tissue at the given parameters. It was found that the UV emission is negligibly low. In conclusion, the results support the assumption that air plasma could be an option for therapy of chronic wounds. PMID:23894661

21 CFR 640.66 - Immunization of donors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Immunization of donors. 640.66 Section 640.66 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.66 Immunization of donors. If...

21 CFR 640.62 - Medical supervision.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Medical supervision. 640.62 Section 640.62 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.62 Medical supervision. A...

21 CFR 640.61 - Informed consent.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Informed consent. 640.61 Section 640.61 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.61 Informed consent. The written...

21 CFR 640.62 - Medical supervision.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Medical supervision. 640.62 Section 640.62 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.62 Medical supervision. A...

21 CFR 640.61 - Informed consent.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Informed consent. 640.61 Section 640.61 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.61 Informed consent. The written...

21 CFR 640.66 - Immunization of donors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Immunization of donors. 640.66 Section 640.66 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.66 Immunization of donors. If...

21 CFR 640.62 - Medical supervision.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2011-04-01 2010-04-01 true Medical supervision. 640.62 Section 640.62 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.62 Medical supervision. A...

21 CFR 640.61 - Informed consent.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2011-04-01 2010-04-01 true Informed consent. 640.61 Section 640.61 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.61 Informed consent. The written...

21 CFR 640.66 - Immunization of donors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2011-04-01 2010-04-01 true Immunization of donors. 640.66 Section 640.66 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.66 Immunization of donors. If...

21 CFR 640.62 - Medical supervision.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Medical supervision. 640.62 Section 640.62 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.62 Medical supervision. A...

21 CFR 640.66 - Immunization of donors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Immunization of donors. 640.66 Section 640.66 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.66 Immunization of donors. If...

21 CFR 640.61 - Informed consent.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Informed consent. 640.61 Section 640.61 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.61 Informed consent. The written...

21 CFR 640.62 - Medical supervision.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Medical supervision. 640.62 Section 640.62 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.62 Medical supervision. A...

21 CFR 640.61 - Informed consent.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Informed consent. 640.61 Section 640.61 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.61 Informed consent. The written...

21 CFR 640.66 - Immunization of donors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Immunization of donors. 640.66 Section 640.66 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.66 Immunization of donors. If...

Effects of dietary sesame seeds on plasma tocopherol levels.

PubMed

Cooney, R V; Custer, L J; Okinaka, L; Franke, A A

2001-01-01

The tocopherols, the major vitamers of vitamin E, are believed to play a role in the prevention of human aging-related diseases such as cancer and heart disease, yet little is known concerning determinants of their plasma concentrations. Evidence from animal studies suggests that the dietary source of gamma-tocopherol can significantly affect plasma levels of this tocopherol as well as its functional vitamin E activity. To determine whether plasma levels of tocopherols in humans are similarly altered, a study was undertaken in which subjects (n = 9) were fed muffins containing equivalent amounts of gamma-tocopherol from sesame seeds, walnuts, or soy oil. We observed that consumption of as little as 5 mg of gamma-tocopherol per day over a three-day period from sesame seeds, but not from walnuts or soy oil, significantly elevated serum gamma-tocopherol levels (19.1% increase, p = 0.03) and depressed plasma beta-tocopherol (34% decrease, p = 0.01). No significant changes in baseline or postintervention plasma levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, or carotenoids were seen for any of the intervention groups. All subjects consuming sesame seed-containing muffins had detectable levels of the sesame lignan sesamolin in their plasma. Consumption of moderate amounts of sesame seeds appears to significantly increase plasma gamma-tocopherol and alter plasma tocopherol ratios in humans and is consistent with the effects of dietary sesame seeds observed in rats leading to elevated plasma gamma-tocopherol and enhanced vitamin E bioactivity.

Serum-converted platelet lysate can substitute for fetal bovine serum in human mesenchymal stromal cell cultures.

PubMed

Mojica-Henshaw, Mariluz P; Jacobson, Pam; Morris, Julie; Kelley, Linda; Pierce, Jan; Boyer, Michael; Reems, Jo-Anna

2013-12-01

Fetal bovine serum (FBS) is commonly used as a serum supplement for culturing human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs). However, human cells grown in FBS, especially for extended periods, risk potential exposure to bovine immunogenic proteins and infectious agents. To address this issue, we investigated the ability of a novel human platelet serum supplement to substitute for FBS in hMSC cultures. Platelet lysate-serum (PL-serum) was converted from platelet lysate-plasma (PL-plasma) that was manufactured from pooled platelet-rich plasma (PRP) apheresis units. Growth factor levels and the number of residual intact platelets in PL-serum and PL-plasma were compared with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and flow cytometry, respectively. Proliferation responses of hMSCs cultured in PL-serum, PL-plasma, or FBS were assessed with 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay, the immunophenotype of harvested hMSCs was evaluated by flow cytometry and tri-lineage differentiation potential was evaluated by assessing adipogenic, osteogenic and chondrogenic development. Selected growth factor levels in PL-serum were not significantly different from PL-plasma (P > 0.05). hMSC cultures supplemented with PL-serum had comparable growth kinetics to PL-plasma, and hMSC yields were consistently greater than with FBS. hMSCs harvested from cultures supplemented with PL-serum, PL-plasma or FBS had similar cell surface phenotypes and maintained tri-lineage differentiation potential. PL-serum, similar to PL-plasma, can substitute for FBS in hMSC cultures. Use of PL-serum, in contrast to PL-plasma, has an added advantage of not requiring addition of a xenogeneic source of heparin, providing a completely xeno-free culture medium. Copyright © 2013 International Society for Cellular Therapy. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hepatocytes express the antimicrobial peptide HBD-2 after multiple trauma: an experimental study in human and mice.

PubMed

Fitschen-Oestern, Stefanie; Weuster, Matthias; Lippross, Sebastian; Behrendt, Peter; Fuchs, Sabine; Pufe, Thomas; Tohidnezhad, Mersedeh; Bayer, Andreas; Seekamp, Andreas; Varoga, Deike; Klüter, Tim

2017-03-07

Human-beta defensins (HBD) belong to the family of acute phase peptides and hold a broad antimicrobial spectrum that includes gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. HBD are up-regulated after severe injuries but the source of posttraumatic HBD expression has not been focused on before. In the current study we analysed the role of liver tissue in expression of HBD after multiple trauma in human and mice. HBD-2 expression has been detected in plasma samples of 32 multiple trauma patients (ISS > 16) over 14 days after trauma by ELISA. To investigate major sources of HBD-2, its expression and regulation in plasma samples, polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) and human tissue samples of liver and skin were analysed by ELISA. As liver samples of trauma patients are hard to obtain we tried to review findings in an established trauma model. Plasma samples and liver samples of 56 male C57BL/6 N-mice with a thorax trauma and a femur fracture were analysed by ELISA, real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry for murine beta defensin 4 (MBD-4) and compared with the expression of control group without trauma. The induction of HBD-2 expression in cultured hepatocytes (Hep G2) was analysed after incubation with IL-6, supernatant of Staphylococcus aureus (SA) and Lipopolysaccharides (LPS). One possible signalling pathway was tested by blocking toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) in hepatocytes. Compared to healthy control group, plasma of multiple traumatized patients and mice showed significantly higher defensin levels after trauma. Compared to skin cells, which are known for high beta defensin expression, liver tissue showed less HBD-2 expression, but higher HBD-2 expression compared to PMN. Immunhistochemical staining demonstrated upregulated MBD-4 in hepatocytes of traumatised mice. In HepG2 cells HBD-2 expression could be increased by stimulation with IL-6 and SA. Neutralization of HepG2 cells with αTLR2 showed reduced HBD-2 expression after stimulation with SA. Plasma samples of multiple traumatized patients showed high expression of HBD-2, which may protect the severely injured patient from overwhelming bacterial infection. Our data support the hypothesis that liver is one possible source for HBD-2 in plasma while posttraumatic inflammatory response.

Is N,N-dimethylglycine N-oxide a choline and betaine metabolite?

PubMed

Lever, Michael; McEntyre, Christopher J; George, Peter M; Chambers, Stephen T

2017-06-27

Choline metabolism is by oxidation to betaine, which is demethylated to N,N-dimethylglycine; dimethylglycine is oxidatively demethylated to sarcosine. This pathway is important for osmoregulation and as a source of methyl groups. We asked whether another metabolite was involved. We synthesized the N-oxide of dimethylglycine (DMGO) by oxidizing dimethylglycine with peracetic acid, and measured DMGO in human plasma and urine by HPLC-MS/MS with positive ion detection, using two chromatography procedures, based on ion exchange and HILIC separations. The molecular ion DMGOH+ (m/z=120) yielded four significant fragments (m/z=103, 102, 58 and 42). The suspected DMGO peak in human body fluids showed all these fragments, and co-chromatographed with added standard DMGO in both HPLC systems. Typical plasma concentrations of DMGO are under 1 μmol/l. They may be lower in metabolic syndrome patients. Urine concentrations are higher, and DMGO has a higher fractional clearance than dimethylglycine, betaine and choline. It was present in all of over 80 human urine and plasma samples assayed. Plasma DMGO concentrations correlate with plasma DMG concentrations, with betaine and choline concentrations, with the osmolyte myo-inositol, and strongly with urinary DMGO excretion. We conclude that DMGO is probably a normal human metabolite.

21 CFR 640.73 - Reporting of fatal donor reactions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Reporting of fatal donor reactions. 640.73 Section 640.73 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.73 Reporting of fatal...

21 CFR 640.73 - Reporting of fatal donor reactions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Reporting of fatal donor reactions. 640.73 Section 640.73 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.73 Reporting of fatal...

21 CFR 640.73 - Reporting of fatal donor reactions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2011-04-01 2010-04-01 true Reporting of fatal donor reactions. 640.73 Section 640.73 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.73 Reporting of fatal...

21 CFR 640.73 - Reporting of fatal donor reactions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Reporting of fatal donor reactions. 640.73 Section 640.73 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.73 Reporting of fatal...

21 CFR 640.73 - Reporting of fatal donor reactions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Reporting of fatal donor reactions. 640.73 Section 640.73 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Source Plasma § 640.73 Reporting of fatal...

Induction of proliferation of basal epidermal keratinocytes by cold atmospheric-pressure plasma.

PubMed

Hasse, S; Duong Tran, T; Hahn, O; Kindler, S; Metelmann, H-R; von Woedtke, T; Masur, K

2016-03-01

Over the past few decades, new cold plasma sources have been developed that have the great advantage of operating at atmospheric pressure and at temperatures tolerable by biological material. New applications for these have emerged, especially in the field of dermatology. Recently it was demonstrated that cold atmospheric-pressure plasma positively influences healing of chronic wounds. The potential of cold plasma lies in its capacity to reduce bacterial load in the wound while at the same time stimulating skin cells and therefore promoting wound closure. In recent years, there have been great advances in the understanding of the molecular mechanisms triggered by cold plasma involving signalling pathways and gene regulation in cell culture. To investigate cold plasma-induced effects in ex vivo treated human skin biopsies. Human skin tissue was exposed to cold plasma for different lengths of time, and analysed by immunofluorescence with respect to DNA damage, apoptosis, proliferation and differentiation markers. After cold plasma treatment, the epidermal integrity and keratin expression pattern remained unchanged. As expected, the results revealed an increase in apoptotic cells after 3 and 5 min of treatment. Strikingly, an induction of proliferating basal keratinocytes was detected after cold plasma exposure for 1 and 3 min. As these are the cells that regenerate the epidermis, this could indeed be beneficial for wound closure. We investigated the effect of cold plasma on human skin by detecting molecules for growth and apoptosis, and found that both processes are dependent on treatment time. Therefore, this approach offers promising results for further applications of cold plasma in clinical dermatology. © 2015 British Association of Dermatologists.

Tetramer-organizing polyproline-rich peptides differ in CHO cell-expressed and plasma-derived human butyrylcholinesterase tetramers.

PubMed

Schopfer, Lawrence M; Lockridge, Oksana

2016-06-01

Tetrameric butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) in human plasma is the product of multiple genes, namely one BCHE gene on chromosome 3q26.1 and multiple genes that encode polyproline-rich peptides. The function of the polyproline-rich peptides is to assemble BChE into tetramers. CHO cells transfected with human BChE cDNA express BChE monomers and dimers, but only low quantities of tetramers. Our goal was to identify the polyproline-rich peptides in CHO-cell derived human BChE tetramers. CHO cell-produced human BChE tetramers were purified from serum-free culture medium. Peptides embedded in the tetramerization domain were released from BChE tetramers by boiling and identified by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. A total of 270 proline-rich peptides were sequenced, ranging in size from 6-41 residues. The peptides originated from 60 different proteins that reside in multiple cell compartments including the nucleus, cytoplasm, and endoplasmic reticulum. No single protein was the source of the polyproline-rich peptides in CHO cell-expressed human BChE tetramers. In contrast, 70% of the tetramer-organizing peptides in plasma-derived BChE tetramers originate from lamellipodin. No protein source was identified for polyproline peptides containing up to 41 consecutive proline residues. In conclusion, the use of polyproline-rich peptides as a tetramerization motif is documented only for the cholinesterases, but is expected to serve other tetrameric proteins as well. The CHO cell data suggest that the BChE tetramer-organizing peptide can arise from a variety of proteins. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Genetics Home Reference: dopamine beta-hydroxylase deficiency

MedlinePlus

... deficiency Sources for This Page Cubells JF, Zabetian CP. Human genetics of plasma dopamine beta-hydroxylase activity: ... 16. Review. Citation on PubMed Kim CH, Zabetian CP, Cubells JF, Cho S, Biaggioni I, Cohen BM, Robertson ...

21 CFR 610.41 - Donor deferral.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... infection due to hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) when previously tested under § 610.40(a), (b), and (e) subsequently may donate Source Plasma for use in the preparation of Hepatitis B Immune Globulin (Human...

Photodegradation of carotenoids in human subjects

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Roe, D.A.

Photodegradation of vitamins in vitro is responsible for large losses of these nutrients in foods, beverages, and semisynthetic liquid formula diets. In vivo photodegradation of vitamins has been reported for riboflavin in jaundiced infants exposed to blue light and for folate in patients with chronic psoriasis given photochemotherapy. Two recent studies of normal subjects have also shown that photodegradation of carotenoids in plasma occurs with cumulative exposure of the skin to an artificial light source having maximal spectral emission in the UVA range. Females showed a larger effect of the UV light on their plasma carotenoid levels than males. Thesemore » observations have identified a need for further investigation of the role of sunlight exposure as a determinant of plasma carotenoid levels and vitamin A status in human subjects.« less

Micro liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry with direct liquid introduction used for separation and quantitation of all-trans- and 13-cis-retinoic acids and their 4-oxo metabolites in human plasma.

PubMed

Ranalder, U B; Lausecker, B B; Huselton, C

1993-07-23

The separation and quantitation of the pentafluorobenzyl derivatives of all-trans- and 13-cis-retinoic acids and their 4-oxo metabolites in human plasma on micro high-performance liquid chromatographic columns (0.32 mm I.D.) is described. The column outlet was directly coupled to the source of a quadrupole mass spectrometer via a simple SFC-frit interface. Negative ion chemical ionization conditions were obtained by coaxial introduction of ammonia as a reagent gas. A signal-to-noise ratio well above 3 was obtained for 1 pg of each analyte injected. The limit of quantitation calculated from spiked biological plasma extracts was 0.3 ng/ml.

Application of atmospheric plasma sources in growth and differentiation of plant and mammalian stem cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Puac, Nevena

2014-10-01

The expansion of the plasma medicine and its demand for in-vivo treatments resulted in fast development of various plasma devices that operate at atmospheric pressure. These sources have to fulfill all demands for application on biological samples. One of the sources that meet all the requirements needed for treatment of biological material is plasma needle. Previously, we have used this device for sterilization of planctonic samples of bacteria, MRSA biofilm, for improved differentiation of human periodontal stem cells into osteogenic line and for treatment of plant meristematic cells. It is well known that plasma generates reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) that strongly affect metabolism of living cells. One of the open issues is to correlate external plasma products (electrons, ions, RNS, ROS, photons, strong fields etc.) with the immediate internal response which triggers or induces effects in the living cell. For that purpose we have studied the kinetics of enzymes which are typical indicators of the identity of reactive species from the plasma created environment that can trigger signal transduction in the cell and ensue cell activity. In collaboration with Suzana Zivkovicm, Institute for Biological Research ``Sinisa Stankovic,'' University of Belgrade; Nenad Selakovic, Institute of Physics, University of Belgrade; Milica Milutinovic, Jelena Boljevic, Institute for Biological Research ``Sinisa Stankovic,'' University of Belgrade; and Gordana Malovic, Zoran Lj. Petrovic, Institute of Physics, University of Belgrade. Grants III41011, ON171037 and ON173024, MESTD, Serbia.

Simultaneous determination of acetaminophen and dihydrocodeine in human plasma by UPLC-MS/MS: Its pharmacokinetic application.

PubMed

Qiu, Xiangjun; Lou, Dan; Su, Ding; Liu, Zebin; Gao, Pengtao; Zhang, Nan-sheng

2015-06-15

An ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated to determine acetaminophen (AAP) and dihydrocodeine (DHC) in human plasma simultaneously. Plasma samples were prepared using protein precipitation with acetonitrile, the two analytes and the internal standard midazolam were separated on an Acquity UPLC BEH C18 column and mass spectrometric analysis was performed using a QTrap5500 mass spectrometer coupled with an electro-spray ionization (ESI) source in the positive ion mode. The MRM transitions of m/z 151.2→110.0 and m/z 302.3→199.2 were used to quantify for AAP and DHC, respectively. The linearity of this method was found to be within the concentration range of 50-10000ng/mL for AAP, and 1-100ng/mL for DHC in human plasma, respectively. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) was 50ng/mL and 1ng/mL for AAP and DHC in human plasma, respectively. The relative standard deviations (RSD) of intra and inter precision were less than 10% for both AAP and DHC. The analysis time of per sample was 1.0min. The developed and validated method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of AAP (500mg) with DHC (20mg) capsule in Chinese healthy volunteers (N=20). Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Comprehensive and quantitative proteomic analyses of zebrafish plasma reveals conserved protein profiles between genders and between zebrafish and human.

PubMed

Li, Caixia; Tan, Xing Fei; Lim, Teck Kwang; Lin, Qingsong; Gong, Zhiyuan

2016-04-13

Omic approaches have been increasingly used in the zebrafish model for holistic understanding of molecular events and mechanisms of tissue functions. However, plasma is rarely used for omic profiling because of the technical challenges in collecting sufficient blood. In this study, we employed two mass spectrometric (MS) approaches for a comprehensive characterization of zebrafish plasma proteome, i.e. conventional shotgun liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for an overview study and quantitative SWATH (Sequential Window Acquisition of all THeoretical fragment-ion spectra) for comparison between genders. 959 proteins were identified in the shotgun profiling with estimated concentrations spanning almost five orders of magnitudes. Other than the presence of a few highly abundant female egg yolk precursor proteins (vitellogenins), the proteomic profiles of male and female plasmas were very similar in both number and abundance and there were basically no other highly gender-biased proteins. The types of plasma proteins based on IPA (Ingenuity Pathway Analysis) classification and tissue sources of production were also very similar. Furthermore, the zebrafish plasma proteome shares significant similarities with human plasma proteome, in particular in top abundant proteins including apolipoproteins and complements. Thus, the current study provided a valuable dataset for future evaluation of plasma proteins in zebrafish.

Comprehensive and quantitative proteomic analyses of zebrafish plasma reveals conserved protein profiles between genders and between zebrafish and human

PubMed Central

Li, Caixia; Tan, Xing Fei; Lim, Teck Kwang; Lin, Qingsong; Gong, Zhiyuan

2016-01-01

Omic approaches have been increasingly used in the zebrafish model for holistic understanding of molecular events and mechanisms of tissue functions. However, plasma is rarely used for omic profiling because of the technical challenges in collecting sufficient blood. In this study, we employed two mass spectrometric (MS) approaches for a comprehensive characterization of zebrafish plasma proteome, i.e. conventional shotgun liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for an overview study and quantitative SWATH (Sequential Window Acquisition of all THeoretical fragment-ion spectra) for comparison between genders. 959 proteins were identified in the shotgun profiling with estimated concentrations spanning almost five orders of magnitudes. Other than the presence of a few highly abundant female egg yolk precursor proteins (vitellogenins), the proteomic profiles of male and female plasmas were very similar in both number and abundance and there were basically no other highly gender-biased proteins. The types of plasma proteins based on IPA (Ingenuity Pathway Analysis) classification and tissue sources of production were also very similar. Furthermore, the zebrafish plasma proteome shares significant similarities with human plasma proteome, in particular in top abundant proteins including apolipoproteins and complements. Thus, the current study provided a valuable dataset for future evaluation of plasma proteins in zebrafish. PMID:27071722

Aptamer-facilitated mass cytometry.

PubMed

Mironov, Gleb G; Bouzekri, Alexandre; Watson, Jessica; Loboda, Olga; Ornatsky, Olga; Berezovski, Maxim V

2018-05-01

Mass cytometry is a novel cell-by-cell analysis technique, which uses elemental tags instead of fluorophores. Sample cells undergo rapid ionization in inductively coupled plasma and the ionized elemental tags are then analyzed by means of time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Benefits of the mass cytometry approach are in no need for compensation, the high number of detection channels (up to 100) and low background noise. In this work, we applied a biotinylated aptamer against human PTK7 receptor for characterization of positive (human acute lymphoblastic leukemia) and negative (human Burkitt's lymphoma) cells by a mass cytometry instrument. Our proof of principal experiments showed that biotinylated aptamers in conjunction with metal-labeled neutravidin can be successfully utilized for mass cytometry experiments at par with commercially available antibodies. Graphical abstract Biotinylated aptamers in conjunction with metal-labeled neutravidin bind to cell biomarkers, and then injected into the inductively coupled plasma (ICP) source, where cells are vaporized, atomized, and ionized in the plasma for subsequent mass spectrometry (MS) analysis of lanthanide metals.

Effect of dietary fat source on lipoprotein composition and plasma lipid concentrations in pigs.

PubMed

Faidley, T D; Luhman, C M; Galloway, S T; Foley, M K; Beitz, D C

1990-10-01

Most studies of the effects of dietary fat sources on plasma lipid components have used diets with extreme fat compositions; the current study was designed to more nearly mimic human dietary fat intake. Young growing pigs were fed diets containing either 20 or 40% of energy as soy oil, beef tallow or a 50/50 blend of soy oil and tallow. Different dietary fats did not affect concentrations of cholesterol, triacylglycerol or protein in plasma or major lipoprotein fractions. The concentration of phospholipid was less in plasma and in very low density lipoproteins with soy oil feeding than with tallow feeding. The weight percentage of cholesteryl ester in the low density lipoprotein fraction tended to be greater with 40% than with 20% tallow and tended to be less with 40% than with 20% soy oil. Phospholipid as a weight percentage of low density lipoprotein was least in pigs fed soy oil. Tallow feeding increased the percentage of myristic, palmitic, palmitoleic and oleic acids in plasma, relative to both other groups. Soy oil feeding increased the percentage of linoleic and linolenic acids. These moderate diets were not hypercholesterolemic, but they did alter plasma fatty acid composition and phospholipid concentrations in plasma and very low density lipoprotein.

Plasma Source Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Walker, Jonathan; Heinrich, Jonathon; Font, Gabriel; Ebersohn, Frans; Garrett, Michael

2017-10-01

A 100 kW class lanthanum-hexaboride plasma source is under continuing development for the Lockheed Martin Compact Fusion Reactor program. The current experiment, T4B, has become a test bed for plasma source operation with the goal of creating a high density plasma target for neutral beam heating. We present operation and performance of different plasma source geometries, results of plasma source coupling, and future plasma source development plans. ©2017 Lockheed Martin Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

Photostimulation of osteogenic differentiation on silk scaffolds by plasma arc light source.

PubMed

Çakmak, Anıl Sera; Çakmak, Soner; Vatansever, H Seda; Gümüşderelioğlu, Menemşe

2018-05-01

Low-level laser therapy (LLLT) has been used for more than 30 years to heal wounds. In recent years, LLLT or photostimulation has been indicated as an effective tool for regenerative and dental medicine by using monochromatic light. The aim of this study is to indicate the usability of plasma arc light source for bone regeneration. This is why we used polychromatic light source providing effective wavelengths in the range of 590-1500 nm for cellular response and investigated photostimulation effects on osteogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) seeded on 3D silk scaffolds. Cellular responses were examined by using cell culture methods in terms of proliferation, differentiation, and morphological analyses. The results showed that photostimulation with a polychromatic light source (applied for 5 min from the 3rd day after seeding up to the 28th day in 2-day intervals with 92-mW/cm 2 power from 10-cm distance to the cells) enhanced osteogenic differentiation of hMSCs according to higher alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, collagen and calcium content, osteogenic gene expressions, and matrix mineralization. In conclusion, we suggest that the plasma arc light source that was used here has a great potential for bone regeneration.

Variation and quantification among a target set of phosphopeptides in human plasma by multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) and SWATH MS2 data-independent acquisition

PubMed Central

Zawadzka, Anna M.; Schilling, Birgit; Held, Jason M.; Sahu, Alexandria K.; Cusack, Michael P.; Drake, Penelope M.; Fisher, Susan J.; Gibson, Bradford W.

2015-01-01

Human plasma contains proteins that reflect overall health and represents a rich source of proteins for identifying and understanding disease pathophysiology. However, few studies have investigated changes in plasma phosphoproteins. In addition, little is known about the normal variations in these phosphoproteins, especially with respect to specific sites of modification. To address these questions, we evaluated variability in plasma protein phosphorylation in healthy individuals using multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) and SWATH MS2 data-independent acquisition. First, we developed a discovery workflow for phosphopeptide enrichment from plasma and identified targets for MRM assays. Next, we analyzed plasma from healthy donors using an analytical workflow consisting of MRM and SWATH MS2 that targeted phosphopeptides from 58 and 68 phosphoproteins, respectively. These two methods produced similar results showing low variability in 13 phosphosites from 10 phosphoproteins (CVinter <30%) and high interpersonal variation of 16 phosphosites from 14 phosphoproteins (CVinter >30%). Moreover, these phosphopeptides originate from phosphoproteins involved in cellular processes governing homeostasis, immune response, cell-extracellular matrix interactions, lipid and sugar metabolism, and cell signaling. This limited assessment of technical and biological variability in phosphopeptides generated from plasma phosphoproteins among healthy volunteers constitutes a reference for future studies that target protein phosphorylation as biomarkers. PMID:24853916

Encapsulation of anthocyanins from bilberries - Effects on bioavailability and intestinal accessibility in humans.

PubMed

Mueller, Dolores; Jung, Kathrin; Winter, Manuel; Rogoll, Dorothee; Melcher, Ralph; Kulozik, Ulrich; Schwarz, Karin; Richling, Elke

2018-05-15

Anthocyanins are flavonoids that have been suggested to provide beneficial health effects. The biological activity of anthocyanins is influenced by their pharmacokinetic properties, but anthocyanins are associated with limited bioavailability in humans. In the presented study, we investigated how the encapsulation of bilberry extract (BE), a source of anthocyanins, with either whey protein or citrus pectin influences the bioavailability and intestinal accessibility of anthocyanins in humans. We performed an intervention study that analyzed anthocyanins and their degradation products in the urine, plasma, and ileal effluent of healthy volunteers and ileostomists (subjects without an intact colon). We were able to show, that whey protein encapsulation modulated short-term bioavailability and that citrus pectin encapsulation increased intestinal accessibility during passage through the small intestine and modulated the formation of the degradation product phloroglucinol aldehyde (PGAL) in human plasma. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Look beyond one's own nose: combination of information from publicly available sources reveals an association of GATA4 polymorphisms with plasma triglycerides.

PubMed

Lamina, Claudia; Coassin, Stefan; Illig, Thomas; Kronenberg, Florian

2011-12-01

GATA4iKO mice exhibit impeded triglyceride absorption from intestine and decreased plasma triglyceride levels. Data in humans are lacking. We hypothesized that triglyceride levels might also be regulated by polymorphisms in the GATA4 gene in humans. We used publicly available data from different sources to evaluate this hypothesis. Our approach is a more often applicable advance to uncover associations and their functional implications which would have been otherwise missed by standard genome-wide association studies (GWAS). We used the publicly available GWAS results from 137 SNPs in the GATA4 region for triglyceride levels. We embedded these results into the comprehensive functional genomics data provided in the UCSC Genome Browser including among others information on regulatory elements and interspecies conservation. A concise graphical presentation is proposed together with an R function for automatic data preparation. This process is presented in an educational manner using a screencast to become most useful for other researchers. We observed several polymorphisms in and around the GATA4 gene which have a significant influence on plasma triglyceride levels with the lowest p-value at SNP rs1466785 (Bonferroni-corrected p-value = 1.76e-5). The bioinformatic evaluation of this locus in publicly available functional genomics data provided converging evidence for the presence of a transcriptional regulator downstream of GATA4. The combination of different sources of data has revealed an association of GATA4 with triglyceride levels in humans. Our evaluation exemplifies how an integrative analysis including both statistical and biological perspectives can shed new light on available association data and reveals novel candidate genes, which are otherwise hidden in the noisy region below genome-wide significance. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sensitivity and specificity of a new automated system for the detection of hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus, and human immunodeficiency virus nucleic acid in blood and plasma donations.

PubMed

Galel, Susan A; Simon, Toby L; Williamson, Phillip C; AuBuchon, James P; Waxman, Dan A; Erickson, Yasuko; Bertuzis, Rasa; Duncan, John R; Malhotra, Khushbeer; Vaks, Jeffrey; Huynh, Nancy; Pate, Lisa Lee

2018-03-01

Use of nucleic acid testing (NAT) in donor infectious disease screening improves transfusion safety. Advances in NAT technology include improvements in assay sensitivity and system automation, and real-time viral target discrimination in multiplex assays. This article describes the sensitivity and specificity of cobas MPX, a multiplex assay for detection of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 Group M, HIV-2 and HIV-1 Group O RNA, HCV RNA, and HBV DNA, for use on the cobas 6800/8800 Systems. The specificity of cobas MPX was evaluated in samples from donors of blood and source plasma in the United States. Analytic sensitivity was determined with reference standards. Infectious window periods (WPs) before NAT detectability were calculated for current donor screening assays. The specificity of cobas MPX was 99.946% (99.883%-99.980%) in 11,203 blood donor samples tested individually (IDT), 100% (99.994%-100%) in 63,012 donor samples tested in pools of 6, and 99.994% (99.988%-99.998%) in 108,306 source plasma donations tested in pools of 96. Seven HCV NAT-yield donations and one seronegative occult HBV infection were detected. Ninety-five percent and 50% detection limits in plasma (IU/mL) were 25.7 and 3.8 for HIV-1M, 7.0 and 1.3 for HCV, and 1.4 and 0.3 for HBV. The HBV WP was 1 to 4 days shorter than other donor screening assays by IDT. cobas MPX demonstrated high specificity in blood and source plasma donations tested individually and in pools. High sensitivity, in particular for HBV, shortens the WP and may enhance detection of occult HBV. © 2017 The Authors Transfusion published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of AABB.

Identification of messenger RNA of fetoplacental source in maternal plasma of women with normal pregnancies and pregnancies with intrauterine growth restriction

PubMed Central

García Robles, Reggie; Rojas, Juan Diego; Bermúdez, Martha; Bernal, Jaime

2012-01-01

Objective: to quantify placenta-specific RNA in plasma of women carrying foetuses with intrauterine growth restriction and pregnant women with normal pregnancies. Methods: 8 pregnant women with foetuses with intrauterine growth restriction were studied as well as 18 women with uncomplicated pregnancies in the third pregnancy trimester. Total free RNA was quantified in maternal plasma by spectrophotometry and the gene expression of hPL (Human Placental Lactogen) at the messenger RNA level through technical Real Time-Chain Reaction Polymerase. Results: plasma RNA of fetoplacental origin was successfully detected in 100% of pregnant women. There were no statistically significant differences between the values of total RNA extracted from plasma (p= 0.5975) nor in the messenger RNA expression of hPL gene (p= 0.5785) between cases and controls. Conclusion: messenger RNA of fetoplacental origin can be detected in maternal plasma during pregnancy. PMID:24893189

Identification of messenger RNA of fetoplacental source in maternal plasma of women with normal pregnancies and pregnancies with intrauterine growth restriction.

PubMed

Ayala Ramírez, Paola; García Robles, Reggie; Rojas, Juan Diego; Bermúdez, Martha; Bernal, Jaime

2012-07-01

to quantify placenta-specific RNA in plasma of women carrying foetuses with intrauterine growth restriction and pregnant women with normal pregnancies. 8 pregnant women with foetuses with intrauterine growth restriction were studied as well as 18 women with uncomplicated pregnancies in the third pregnancy trimester. Total free RNA was quantified in maternal plasma by spectrophotometry and the gene expression of hPL (Human Placental Lactogen) at the messenger RNA level through technical Real Time-Chain Reaction Polymerase. plasma RNA of fetoplacental origin was successfully detected in 100% of pregnant women. There were no statistically significant differences between the values of total RNA extracted from plasma (p= 0.5975) nor in the messenger RNA expression of hPL gene (p= 0.5785) between cases and controls. messenger RNA of fetoplacental origin can be detected in maternal plasma during pregnancy.

High Current, High Density Arc Plasma as a New Source for WiPAL

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waleffe, Roger; Endrizzi, Doug; Myers, Rachel; Wallace, John; Clark, Mike; Forest, Cary; WiPAL Team

2016-10-01

The Wisconsin Plasma Astrophysics Lab (WiPAL) has installed a new array of nineteen plasma sources (plasma guns) on its 3 m diameter, spherical vacuum vessel. Each gun is a cylindrical, molybdenum, washer-stabilized, arc plasma source. During discharge, the guns are maintained at 1.2 kA across 100 V for 10 ms by the gun power supply establishing a high density plasma. Each plasma source is fired independently allowing for adjustable plasma parameters, with densities varying between 1018 -1019 m-3 and electron temperatures of 5-15 eV. Measurements were characterized using a 16 tip Langmuir probe. The plasma source will be used as a background plasma for the magnetized coaxial plasma gun (MCPG), the Terrestrial Reconnection Experiment (TREX), and as the plasma source for a magnetic mirror experiment. Temperature, density, and confinement results will be presented. This work is supported by the DoE and the NSF.

Mars Spark Source Prototype

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eichenberg, Dennis J.; Lindamood, Glenn R.; Weiland, Karen J.; VanderWal, Randall L.

1999-01-01

The Mars Spark Source Prototype (MSSP) hardware has been developed as part of a proof of concept system for the detection of trace metals such as lead, cadmium, and arsenic in Martian dusts and soils. A spark discharge produces plasma from a soil sample and detectors measure the optical emission from metals in the plasma that will allow their identification and quantification. Trace metal measurements are vital for the assessment of the potential toxicity of the Martian environment for human exploration. The current method of X-ray fluorescence can yield concentrations only of major species. Other instruments are incompatible with the volume, weight, and power constraints for a Mars mission. The instrument will be developed primarily for use in the Martian environment, but would be adaptable for terrestrial use in environmental monitoring. This paper describes the Mars Spark Source Prototype hardware, the results of the characterization tests, and future plans for hardware development.

Diet-derived phenols in plasma and tissues and their implications for health.

PubMed

Clifford, M N

2004-12-01

This paper seeks to catalyse a reappraisal of the nature, fate and biological significance in humans of phenols, polyphenols and tannins (PPT) consumed in normal diets, and in particular questions the primacy of PPT radical-scavenging mechanisms for the supposed health benefits of diets rich in fruits and vegetables. PPT are classified by structure and function. Arguments are presented to show that cinnamates and derived polyphenols make significantly larger contributions to the total PPT intake than the flavonols and flavones upon which the vast majority of attention has been focussed previously. Daily intakes of total PPT may range from less than 100 mg to in excess of 2 g, and the critical importance of coffee and black tea as the major dietary sources is shown. Only some 5% of the dietary PPT is absorbed in the duodenum, and of this only some 5%, mainly flavanols, reaches the plasma unchanged, the balance being mammalian conjugates. Over 95% of the intake passes to the colon and is fermented by the gut microflora. A fraction of the resulting microbial metabolites is absorbed and appears in the plasma primarily as mammalian conjugates. Even following high intakes of PPT, the plasma metabolites collectively make a very small (less than 5%) and transient contribution to the total concentration of redox active substances in plasma. This explains the failure of most studies that sought to detect an increase in plasma antioxidant power after consuming a PPT-rich meal or supplement. The powerfully antioxidant PPT aglycones, much used in in vitro studies, do not reach the plasma. The redox potential of those unchanged PPT and PPT metabolites that reach the plasma enables them to scavenge damaging radicals, but the endogenous plasma antioxidants, especially ascorbate, are required for disposal of the resultant phenoxyl radicals. Black tea and coffee, the major sources of PPT, are poor sources of ascorbate. It is suggested that if diets rich in fruits and vegetables are health-promoting, and if these effects are due to PPT, then alternatives to radical-scavenging mechanisms must be sought. Evidence is presented to show that some mammalian metabolites of PPT may indeed be able to protect the vascular endothelium and that diets rich in PPT may in humans at normal dietary levels have the ability to protect against Type II diabetes and the metabolic syndrome through effects on glucose absorption and associated hormones. Such effects are recommended for further investigation.

Cytotoxicity of cancer HeLa cells sensitivity to normal MCF10A cells in cultivations with cell culture medium treated by microwave-excited atmospheric pressure plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takahashi, Yohei; Taki, Yusuke; Takeda, Keigo; Hashizume, Hiroshi; Tanaka, Hiromasa; Ishikawa, Kenji; Hori, Masaru

2018-03-01

Cytotoxic effects of human epithelial carcinoma HeLa cells sensitivity to human mammary epithelial MCF10A cells appeared in incubation with the plasma-activated medium (PAM), where the cell culture media were irradiated with the hollow-shaped contact of a continuously discharged plasma that was sustained by application of a microwave power under Ar gas flow at atmospheric pressure. The discharged plasma had an electron density of 7  ×  1014 cm-3. As the nozzle exit to the plasma source was a distance of 5 mm to the medium, concentrations of 180 µM for H2O2 and 77 µM for NO2- were generated in the PAM for 30 s irradiation, resulting in the control of irradiation periods for aqueous H2O2 with a generation rate of 6.0 µM s-1, and nitrite ion (NO2- ) with a rate of 2.2 µM s-1. Effective concentrations of H2O2 and NO2- for the antitumor effects were revealed in the microwave-excited PAM, with consideration of the complicated reactions at the plasma-liquid interfaces.

Postprandial lipid responses of butter blend containing fish oil in a single-meal study in humans.

PubMed

Overgaard, Julie; Porsgaard, Trine; Guo, Zheng; Lauritzen, Lotte; Mu, Huiling

2008-10-01

The postprandial effects of a butter product containing fish oil were investigated in a single-meal, randomized crossover study with a commercial butter product as the control. Twelve healthy males consumed two test meals with (13)C-labelled cholesterol (45 mg) and either an interesterified butter blend with fish oil (352 mg n-3 long-chain PUFA (LCPUFA)) or the commercial butter blend. Blood samples were collected after the meals and in the fasting condition on the test day and the following morning, and were analysed for cholesterol absorption, plasma lipid profile and fatty acid composition. No significant difference in the postprandial plasma fatty acid composition was observed between the groups, neither difference in cholesterol absorption, plasma cholesterol or the cholesterol contents of plasma lipoproteins. The incorporation of fish oil in the butter resulted in a significant lower concentration of triacylglycerols in the plasma 2 h after the meal in comparison with the commercial butter blend (p = 0.02); there was, however, no significant difference 24 h after the meal. In conclusion, fish oil-enriched butter blend provides a source to increase the intake of n-3 LCPUFA in the population, but has no acute effect on cholesterol absorption and plasma cholesterol concentration in human.

Non-thermal atmospheric pressure HF plasma source: generation of nitric oxide and ozone for bio-medical applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kühn, S.; Bibinov, N.; Gesche, R.; Awakowicz, P.

2010-01-01

A new miniature high-frequency (HF) plasma source intended for bio-medical applications is studied using nitrogen/oxygen mixture at atmospheric pressure. This plasma source can be used as an element of a plasma source array for applications in dermatology and surgery. Nitric oxide and ozone which are produced in this plasma source are well-known agents for proliferation of the cells, inhalation therapy for newborn infants, disinfection of wounds and blood ozonation. Using optical emission spectroscopy, microphotography and numerical simulation, the gas temperature in the active plasma region and plasma parameters (electron density and electron distribution function) are determined for varied nitrogen/oxygen flows. The influence of the gas flows on the plasma conditions is studied. Ozone and nitric oxide concentrations in the effluent of the plasma source are measured using absorption spectroscopy and electro-chemical NO-detector at variable gas flows. Correlations between plasma parameters and concentrations of the particles in the effluent of the plasma source are discussed. By varying the gas flows, the HF plasma source can be optimized for nitric oxide or ozone production. Maximum concentrations of 2750 ppm and 400 ppm of NO and O3, correspondingly, are generated.

Focused electron and ion beam systems

DOEpatents

Leung, Ka-Ngo; Reijonen, Jani; Persaud, Arun; Ji, Qing; Jiang, Ximan

2004-07-27

An electron beam system is based on a plasma generator in a plasma ion source with an accelerator column. The electrons are extracted from a plasma cathode in a plasma ion source, e.g. a multicusp plasma ion source. The beam can be scanned in both the x and y directions, and the system can be operated with multiple beamlets. A compact focused ion or electron beam system has a plasma ion source and an all-electrostatic beam acceleration and focusing column. The ion source is a small chamber with the plasma produced by radio-frequency (RF) induction discharge. The RF antenna is wound outside the chamber and connected to an RF supply. Ions or electrons can be extracted from the source. A multi-beam system has several sources of different species and an electron beam source.

Development of a radio frequency ion source with multi-helicon plasma injectors for neutral beam injection system of Versatile Experiment Spherical Torus

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Choe, Kyumin; Jung, Bongki; Chung, Kyoung-Jae, E-mail: jkjlsh1@snu.ac.kr

2014-02-15

Despite of high plasma density, helicon plasma has not yet been applied to a large area ion source such as a driver for neutral beam injection (NBI) system due to intrinsically poor plasma uniformity in the discharge region. In this study, a radio-frequency (RF) ion source with multi-helicon plasma injectors for high plasma density with good uniformity has been designed and constructed for the NBI system of Versatile Experiment Spherical Torus at Seoul National University. The ion source consists of a rectangular plasma expansion chamber (120 × 120 × 120 mm{sup 3}), four helicon plasma injectors with annular permanent magnetsmore » and RF power system. Main feature of the source is downstream plasma confinement in the cusp magnetic field configuration which is generated by arranging polarities of permanent magnets in the helicon plasma injectors. In this paper, detailed design of the multi-helicon plasma injector and plasma characteristics of the ion source are presented.« less

Development of a radio frequency ion source with multi-helicon plasma injectors for neutral beam injection system of Versatile Experiment Spherical Torus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choe, Kyumin; Jung, Bongki; Chung, Kyoung-Jae; Hwang, Y. S.

2014-02-01

Despite of high plasma density, helicon plasma has not yet been applied to a large area ion source such as a driver for neutral beam injection (NBI) system due to intrinsically poor plasma uniformity in the discharge region. In this study, a radio-frequency (RF) ion source with multi-helicon plasma injectors for high plasma density with good uniformity has been designed and constructed for the NBI system of Versatile Experiment Spherical Torus at Seoul National University. The ion source consists of a rectangular plasma expansion chamber (120 × 120 × 120 mm3), four helicon plasma injectors with annular permanent magnets and RF power system. Main feature of the source is downstream plasma confinement in the cusp magnetic field configuration which is generated by arranging polarities of permanent magnets in the helicon plasma injectors. In this paper, detailed design of the multi-helicon plasma injector and plasma characteristics of the ion source are presented.

Development of a radio frequency ion source with multi-helicon plasma injectors for neutral beam injection system of Versatile Experiment Spherical Torus.

PubMed

Choe, Kyumin; Jung, Bongki; Chung, Kyoung-Jae; Hwang, Y S

2014-02-01

Despite of high plasma density, helicon plasma has not yet been applied to a large area ion source such as a driver for neutral beam injection (NBI) system due to intrinsically poor plasma uniformity in the discharge region. In this study, a radio-frequency (RF) ion source with multi-helicon plasma injectors for high plasma density with good uniformity has been designed and constructed for the NBI system of Versatile Experiment Spherical Torus at Seoul National University. The ion source consists of a rectangular plasma expansion chamber (120 × 120 × 120 mm(3)), four helicon plasma injectors with annular permanent magnets and RF power system. Main feature of the source is downstream plasma confinement in the cusp magnetic field configuration which is generated by arranging polarities of permanent magnets in the helicon plasma injectors. In this paper, detailed design of the multi-helicon plasma injector and plasma characteristics of the ion source are presented.

The establishment of a WHO Reference Reagent for anti-malaria (Plasmodium falciparum) human serum.

PubMed

Bryan, Donna; Silva, Nilupa; Rigsby, Peter; Dougall, Thomas; Corran, Patrick; Bowyer, Paul W; Ho, Mei Mei

2017-08-05

At a World Health Organization (WHO) sponsored meeting it was concluded that there is an urgent need for a reference preparation that contains antibodies against malaria antigens in order to support serology studies and vaccine development. It was proposed that this reference would take the form of a lyophilized serum or plasma pool from a malaria-endemic area. In response, an immunoassay standard, comprising defibrinated human plasma has been prepared and evaluated in a collaborative study. A pool of human plasma from a malaria endemic region was collected from 140 single plasma donations selected for reactivity to Plasmodium falciparum apical membrane antigen-1 (AMA-1) and merozoite surface proteins (MSP-1 19 , MSP-1 42 , MSP-2 and MSP-3). This pool was defibrinated, filled and freeze dried into a single batch of ampoules to yield a stable source of naturally occurring antibodies to P. falciparum. The preparation was evaluated by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in a collaborative study with sixteen participants from twelve different countries. This anti-malaria human serum preparation (NIBSC Code: 10/198) was adopted by the WHO Expert Committee on Biological Standardization (ECBS) in October 2014, as the first WHO reference reagent for anti-malaria (Plasmodium falciparum) human serum with an assigned arbitrary unitage of 100 units (U) per ampoule. Analysis of the reference reagent in a collaborative study has demonstrated the benefit of this preparation for the reduction in inter- and intra-laboratory variability in ELISA. Whilst locally sourced pools are regularly use for harmonization both within and between a few laboratories, the presence of a WHO-endorsed reference reagent should enable optimal harmonization of malaria serological assays either by direct use of the reference reagent or calibration of local standards against this WHO reference. The intended uses of this reference reagent, a multivalent preparation, are (1) to allow cross-comparisons of results of vaccine trials performed in different centres/with different products; (2) to facilitate standardization and harmonization of immunological assays used in epidemiology research; and (3) to allow optimization and validation of immunological assays used in malaria vaccine development.

The Jovian Electron and Ion Spectrometer (JEI) for the JUICE mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fränz, M.; Bührke, U.; Ferreira, P.; Fischer, H.; Heumüller, P.; Krupp, N.; Kühne, W.; Roussos, E.

2017-09-01

The magnetosphere of Jupiter is apart from the Sun the strongest source of charged particles in the Solar system. The interaction of these particles with the exospheres of the Jovian moons forms one of the most complex plasma laboratories encountered by human space flight. For this reason the plasma analyzer package forms a crucial experiment of the Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer (JUICE). As part of the Plasma Environment Package (PEP) we here describe a combined electron and ion spectrometer which is able to measure the electron and ion distribution functions in the energy range 1 to 50000 eV with high sensitivity and time resolution. This instrument is called the Jovian Electron and Ion Analyzer, JEI.

Analysis of concentration and (13)C enrichment of D-galactose in human plasma.

PubMed

Schadewaldt, P; Hammen, H W; Loganathan, K; Bodner-Leidecker, A; Wendel, U

2000-05-01

A stable-isotope dilution method for the sensitive determination of D-galactose in human plasma was established. D-[(13)C]Galactose was added to plasma, and the concentration was measured after D-glucose was removed from the plasma by treatment with D-glucose oxidase and the sample was purified by ion-exchange chromatography. For gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric analysis, aldononitrile pentaacetate derivatives were prepared. Monitoring of the [MH-60](+) ion intensities at m/z 328, 329, and 334 in the positive chemical ionization mode allowed the assessment of 1-(12)C-, 1-(13)C-, and U-(13)C(6)-labeled D-galactose, respectively. The D-galactose concentration was quantified on the basis of the (13)C-labeled internal standard. The method was linear (range examined, 0.1-5 micromol/L) and of good repeatability in the low and high concentration ranges (within- and between-run CVs <15%). The limit of quantification for plasma D-galactose was <0.02 micromol/L. Measurements in plasma of postabsorptive subjects yielded D-galactose concentrations (mean +/- SD) of 0.12 +/- 0.03 (n = 16), 0.11 +/- 0.04 (n = 15), 1.44 +/- 0.54 (n = 10), and 0.17 +/- 0.07 (n = 5) micromol/L in healthy adults, diabetic patients, patients with classical galactosemia, and obligate heterozygous parents thereof, respectively. These data were considerably lower (3- to 18-fold) than the values of a conventional enzymatic assay. The procedure was also applied successfully in a stable-isotope turnover study to evaluate endogenous D-galactose formation. The present findings establish that detection of D-galactose from endogenous sources is feasible in human plasma and show that erroneously high results may be obtained by enzymatic methods.

Control of adhesion of human induced pluripotent stem cells to plasma-patterned polydimethylsiloxane coated with vitronectin and γ-globulin.

PubMed

Yamada, Ryotaro; Hattori, Koji; Tachikawa, Saoko; Tagaya, Motohiro; Sasaki, Toru; Sugiura, Shinji; Kanamori, Toshiyuki; Ohnuma, Kiyoshi

2014-09-01

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) are a promising source of cells for medical applications. Recently, the development of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microdevices to control the microenvironment of hiPSCs has been extensively studied. PDMS surfaces are often treated with low-pressure air plasma to facilitate protein adsorption and cell adhesion. However, undefined molecules present in the serum and extracellular matrix used to culture cells complicate the study of cell adhesion. Here, we studied the effects of vitronectin and γ-globulin on hiPSC adhesion to plasma-treated and untreated PDMS surfaces under defined culture conditions. We chose these proteins because they have opposite properties: vitronectin mediates hiPSC attachment to hydrophilic siliceous surfaces, whereas γ-globulin is adsorbed by hydrophobic surfaces and does not mediate cell adhesion. Immunostaining showed that, when applied separately, vitronectin and γ-globulin were adsorbed by both plasma-treated and untreated PDMS surfaces. In contrast, when PDMS surfaces were exposed to a mixture of the two proteins, vitronectin was preferentially adsorbed onto plasma-treated surfaces, whereas γ-globulin was adsorbed onto untreated surfaces. Human iPSCs adhered to the vitronectin-rich plasma-treated surfaces but not to the γ-globulin-rich untreated surfaces. On the basis of these results, we used perforated masks to prepare plasma-patterned PDMS substrates, which were then used to pattern hiPSCs. The patterned hiPSCs expressed undifferentiated-cell markers and did not escape from the patterned area for at least 7 days. The patterned PDMS could be stored for up to 6 days before hiPSCs were plated. We believe that our results will be useful for the development of hiPSC microdevices. Copyright © 2014 The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hundred joules plasma focus device as a potential pulsed source for in vitro cancer cell irradiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jain, J.; Moreno, J.; Andaur, R.; Armisen, R.; Morales, D.; Marcelain, K.; Avaria, G.; Bora, B.; Davis, S.; Pavez, C.; Soto, L.

2017-08-01

Plasma focus devices may arise as useful source to perform experiments aimed to study the effects of pulsed radiation on human cells in vitro. In the present work, a table top hundred joules plasma focus device, namely "PF-400J", was adapted to irradiate colorectal cancer cell line, DLD-1. For pulsed x-rays, the doses (energy absorbed per unit mass, measured in Gy) were measured using thermoluminescence detectors (TLD-100 dosimeters). The neutron fluence and the average energy were used to estimate the pulsed neutron doses. Fifty pulses of x-rays (0.12 Gy) and fifty pulses of neutrons (3.5 μGy) were used to irradiate the cancer cells. Irradiation-induced DNA damage and cell death were assessed at different time points after irradiation. Cell death was observed using pulsed neutron irradiation, at ultralow doses. Our results indicate that the PF-400J can be used for in vitro assessment of the effect of pulsed radiation in cancer cell research.

Medical Plasma in Dentistry: A Future Therapy for Peri-implantitis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koban, Ina; Jablonowski, Lukasz; Kramer, Axel; Weltmann, Klaus-Dieter; Kocher, Thomas

Biofilm formation plays a major role in the pathogenesis of many oral diseases especially in peri-implantits. To evaluate the anti-biofilm effect of different plasma devices and processes we used different dental biofilm models: Candida albicans, Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus sanguinis, aerobe multispecies human saliva and anaerobe plaque biofilms. After 10 min treatment we reduced the biofilms by 5 log10 steps using dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma. Chlorhexidine is the gold standard antiseptic which achieved in the same time only a 1.5 log10 reduction. All plasma devices (DBD or plasma jets) damaged the membrane of the microorganisms but only etching plasma sources can remove the biofilm as shown in CLSM micrographs. It is possible to improve the plasma process using antiseptics like octenidine. This combination significantly reduced CFU values after 1 min plasma treatment compared to the plasma control. Beside the anti-biofilm effect an additional effect of plasma is the contact angle reduction of different titanium implant surfaces from 90° to super-hydrophilic (<5°). This can improve the implant healing process. Thus in the future, plasma could be an interesting treatment option in dentistry, especially in treatment of peri-implantits.

Performance evaluation of a permanent ring magnet based helicon plasma source for negative ion source research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pandey, Arun; Bandyopadhyay, M.; Sudhir, Dass; Chakraborty, A.

2017-10-01

Helicon wave heated plasmas are much more efficient in terms of ionization per unit power consumed. A permanent magnet based compact helicon wave heated plasma source is developed in the Institute for Plasma Research, after carefully optimizing the geometry, the frequency of the RF power, and the magnetic field conditions. The HELicon Experiment for Negative ion-I source is the single driver helicon plasma source that is being studied for the development of a large sized, multi-driver negative hydrogen ion source. In this paper, the details about the single driver machine and the results from the characterization of the device are presented. A parametric study at different pressures and magnetic field values using a 13.56 MHz RF source has been carried out in argon plasma, as an initial step towards source characterization. A theoretical model is also presented for the particle and power balance in the plasma. The ambipolar diffusion process taking place in a magnetized helicon plasma is also discussed.

Performance evaluation of a permanent ring magnet based helicon plasma source for negative ion source research.

PubMed

Pandey, Arun; Bandyopadhyay, M; Sudhir, Dass; Chakraborty, A

2017-10-01

Helicon wave heated plasmas are much more efficient in terms of ionization per unit power consumed. A permanent magnet based compact helicon wave heated plasma source is developed in the Institute for Plasma Research, after carefully optimizing the geometry, the frequency of the RF power, and the magnetic field conditions. The HELicon Experiment for Negative ion-I source is the single driver helicon plasma source that is being studied for the development of a large sized, multi-driver negative hydrogen ion source. In this paper, the details about the single driver machine and the results from the characterization of the device are presented. A parametric study at different pressures and magnetic field values using a 13.56 MHz RF source has been carried out in argon plasma, as an initial step towards source characterization. A theoretical model is also presented for the particle and power balance in the plasma. The ambipolar diffusion process taking place in a magnetized helicon plasma is also discussed.

Stability of Colistin and Colistin Methanesulfonate in Aqueous Media and Plasma as Determined by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography

PubMed Central

Li, Jian; Milne, Robert W.; Nation, Roger L.; Turnidge, John D.; Coulthard, Kingsley

2003-01-01

The stabilities of colistin and colistin methanesulfonate (CMS) in different aqueous media were studied by specific high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) methods. Colistin was stable in water at 4 and 37°C for up to 60 days and 120 h, respectively. However, degradation was observed when colistin was stored in isotonic phosphate buffer (0.067 M, pH 7.4) and human plasma at 37°C. The stability of CMS from three different sources in water was explored by strong-anion-exchange (SAX) HPLC for CMS and by measuring the concentrations of colistin formed from the hydrolysis of CMS. The peaks of CMS in SAX HPLC disappeared almost completely after 12 h at 37°C, but appeared to remain intact for up to 2 days at 4°C. Over the same period, there was no formation of colistin at 4°C. In water, phosphate buffer, and plasma, there was rapid formation of colistin within 24 to 48 h at 37°C from the three sources of CMS. The hydrolysis products were assumed to be a complex mixture of many different sulfomethyl derivatives, including colistin. The stability of a fourth source of CMS in Mueller-Hinton broth examined during 30 min at 37°C revealed no formation of colistin. Along with previous microbiological studies, this suggested that different sulfomethyl CMSs possess intrinsic antibacterial activity. These results will be helpful for understanding the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of colistin and CMS in humans and animals. PMID:12654671

Development challenges for Low Temperature Plasma Sources ``from Idea to Prototype''

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gerling, T.; Baudler, J.-S.; Horn, S.; Schmidt, M.; Weltmann, K.-D.

2015-09-01

While plasma medicine is a well-motivated and intensively investigated topic, the requirements on the plasma sources change for individual applications. For example in dermatology, a large scale treatment is favored, while in dentistry, a localized application of plasma sources is required. Meanwhile, plasma source development is based on feasibility and not on the application. When a source is developed, it is usually motivated towards an application instead of considering an application and designing a plasma source to fit its needs. Each approach has its advantage and can lead to an advance in the field. With this contribution, we will present an approach from idea to prototype and show challenges in the plasma source development. For example, the consideration of legal regulations, adaption of the plasma source for a specific field of application and the interplay of gas flow dynamics with electrical field distribution. The solution was developed within several iterations to optimize it for different requirements. The obstacles that occurred during the development process will be highlighted and discussed. Afterwards the final source is characterized for a potential medical application and compared directly with a plasma source certified as a medical product. Acknowledging grants: AU 11 038; ESF/IV-BM-B35-0010/13.

Amino acid changes during transition to a vegan diet supplemented with fish in healthy humans.

PubMed

Elshorbagy, Amany; Jernerén, Fredrik; Basta, Marianne; Basta, Caroline; Turner, Cheryl; Khaled, Maram; Refsum, Helga

2017-08-01

To explore whether changes in dietary protein sources can lower plasma branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), aromatic amino acids and sulfur amino acids (SAAs) that are often elevated in the obese, insulin-resistant state and in type 2 diabetes. Thirty-six subjects (mean age 31 ± 2 years) underwent a voluntary abstinence from meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products for 6 weeks, while enriching the diet with fish, in fulfillment of a religious fast. Subjects were assessed 1 week before the fast (V1), 1 week after initiation of the fast (V2) and in the last week of the fast (V3). Thirty-four subjects completed all three visits. Fasting plasma BCAAs decreased at V2 and remained low at V3 (P < 0.001 for all). Valine showed the greatest decline, by 20 and 19 % at V2 and V3, respectively. Phenylalanine and tryptophan, but not tyrosine, also decreased at V2 and V3. The two proteinogenic SAAs, methionine and cysteine, remained stable, but the cysteine product, taurine, decreased from 92 ± 7 μmol/L to 66 ± 6 (V2; P = 0.003) and 65 ± 6 μmol/L (V3; P = 0.003). A progressive decline in plasma glutamic acid, coupled with an increase in glutamine, was observed. Plasma total and LDL cholesterol decreased at V2 and V3 (P < 0.001 for all). Changing dietary protein sources to plant- and fish-based sources in an ad libitum setting lowers the plasma BCAAs that have been linked to diabetes risk. These findings point to habitual diet as a potentially modifiable determinant of fasting plasma BCAA concentrations.

A C3(H20) recycling pathway is a component of the intracellular complement system

PubMed Central

Elvington, Michelle; Bertram, Paula; Atkinson, John P.

2017-01-01

An intracellular complement system (ICS) has recently been described in immune and nonimmune human cells. This system can be activated in a convertase-independent manner from intracellular stores of the complement component C3. The source of these stores has not been rigorously investigated. In the present study, Western blotting identified a band corresponding to C3 in freshly isolated human peripheral blood cells that was absent in corresponding cell lines. One difference between native cells and cell lines was the time absent from a fluid-phase complement source; therefore, we hypothesized that loading C3 from plasma was a route of establishing intracellular C3 stores. We found that many types of human cells specifically internalized C3(H2O), the hydrolytic product of C3, and not native C3, from the extracellular milieu. Uptake was rapid, saturable, and sensitive to competition with unlabeled C3(H2O), indicating a specific mechanism of loading. Under steady-state conditions, approximately 80% of incorporated C3(H2O) was returned to the extracellular space. These studies identify an ICS recycling pathway for C3(H2O). The loaded C3(H2O) represents a source of C3a, and its uptake altered the cytokine profile of activated CD4+ T cells. Importantly, these results indicate that the impact of soluble plasma factors should be considered when performing in vitro studies assessing cellular immune function. PMID:28192370

78 FR 32668 - Draft Guidance for Industry: Changes to an Approved Application: Biological Products: Human Blood...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-05-31

..., including Source Plasma, with recommendations intended to assist with determining which reporting mechanism... final version of the guidance, submit either electronic or written comments on the draft guidance by... INFORMATION section for electronic access to the draft guidance document. Submit electronic comments on the...

Apparatus for coating a surface with a metal utilizing a plasma source

DOEpatents

Brown, I.G.; MacGill, R.A.; Galvin, J.E.

1991-05-07

An apparatus and method are disclosed for coating or layering a surface with a metal utilizing a metal vapor vacuum arc plasma source. The apparatus includes a trigger mechanism for actuating the metal vacuum vapor arc plasma source in a pulsed mode at a predetermined rate. The surface or substrate to be coated or layered is supported in position with the plasma source in a vacuum chamber. The surface is electrically biased for a selected period of time during the pulsed mode of operation of the plasma source. Both the pulsing of the metal vapor vacuum arc plasma source and the electrical biasing of the surface are synchronized for selected periods of time. 10 figures.

Apparatus for coating a surface with a metal utilizing a plasma source

DOEpatents

Brown, Ian G.; MacGill, Robert A.; Galvin, James E.

1991-01-01

An apparatus and method for coating or layering a surface with a metal utilizing a metal vapor vacuum arc plasma source. The apparatus includes a trigger mechanism for actuating the metal vacuum vapor arc plasma source in a pulsed mode at a predetermined rate. The surface or substrate to be coated or layered is supported in position with the plasma source in a vacuum chamber. The surface is electrically biased for a selected period of time during the pulsed mode of operation of the plasma source. Both the pulsing of the metal vapor vacuum arc plasma source and the electrical biasing of the surface are synchronized for selected periods of time.

Comparison of ESI- and APCI-LC-MS/MS methods: A case study of levonorgestrel in human plasma.

PubMed

Wang, Rulin; Zhang, Lin; Zhang, Zunjian; Tian, Yuan

2016-12-01

Electrospray ionization (ESI) and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) techniques for liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) determination of levonorgestrel were evaluated. In consideration of difference in ionization mechanism, the two ionization sources were compared in terms of LC conditions, MS parameters and performance of method. The sensitivity for detection of levonorgestrel with ESI was 0.25 ng/mL which was lower than 1 ng/mL with APCI. Matrix effects were evaluated for levonorgestrel and canrenone (internal standard, IS) in human plasma, and the results showed that APCI source appeared to be slightly less liable to matrix effect than ESI source. With an overall consideration, ESI was chosen as a better ionization technique for rapid and sensitive quantification of levonorgestrel. The optimized LC-ESI-MS/MS method was validated for a linear range of 0.25-50 ng/mL with a correlation coefficient ≥0.99. The intra- and inter-batch precision and accuracy were within 11.72% and 6.58%, respectively. The application of this method was demonstrated by a bioequivalence study following a single oral administration of 1.5 mg levonorgestrel tablets in 21 Chinese healthy female volunteers.

Hall Current Plasma Source Having a Center-Mounted or a Surface-Mounted Cathode

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Martinez, Rafael A. (Inventor); Moritz, Jr., Joel A. (Inventor); Williams, John D. (Inventor); Farnell, Casey C. (Inventor)

2018-01-01

A miniature Hall current plasma source apparatus having magnetic shielding of the walls from ionized plasma, an integrated discharge channel and gas distributor, an instant-start hollow cathode mounted to the plasma source, and an externally mounted keeper, is described. The apparatus offers advantages over other Hall current plasma sources having similar power levels, including: lower mass, longer lifetime, lower part count including fewer power supplies, and the ability to be continuously adjustable to lower average power levels using pulsed operation and adjustment of the pulse duty cycle. The Hall current plasma source can provide propulsion for small spacecraft that either do not have sufficient power to accommodate a propulsion system or do not have available volume to incorporate the larger propulsion systems currently available. The present low-power Hall current plasma source can be used to provide energetic ions to assist the deposition of thin films in plasma processing applications.

Rise in plasma lactate concentrations with psychosocial stress: a possible sign of cerebral energy demand.

PubMed

Kubera, Britta; Hubold, Christian; Otte, Saskia; Lindenberg, Ann-Sophie; Zeiss, Irena; Krause, Regina; Steinkamp, Mirja; Klement, Johanna; Entringer, Sonja; Pellerin, Luc; Peters, Achim

2012-01-01

It is known that exogenous lactate given as an i.v. energy infusion is able to counteract a neuroglycopenic state that developed during psychosocial stress. It is unknown, however, whether the brain under stressful conditions can induce a rise in plasma lactate to satisfy its increased needs during stress. Since lactate is i) an alternative cerebral energy substrate to glucose and ii) its plasmatic concentration is influenced by the sympathetic nervous system, the present study aimed at investigating whether plasma lactate concentrations increase with psychosocial stress in humans. 30 healthy young men participated in two sessions (stress induced by the Trier Social Stress Test and a non-stress control session). Blood samples were frequently taken to assess plasma lactate concentrations and stress hormone profiles. Plasma lactate increased 47% during psychosocial stress (from 0.9 ± 0.05 to 1.4 ± 0.1 mmol/l; interaction time × stress intervention: F = 19.7, p < 0.001). This increase in lactate concentrations during stress was associated with an increase in epinephrine (R(2) = 0.221, p = 0.02) and ACTH concentrations (R(2) = 0.460, p < 0.001). Plasma lactate concentrations increase during acute psychosocial stress in humans. This finding suggests the existence of a demand mechanism that functions to allocate an additional source of energy from the body towards the brain, which we refer to as 'cerebral lactate demand'.

Consumption of canned citrus fruit meals increases human plasma β-cryptoxanthin concentration, whereas lycopene and β-carotene concentrations did not change in healthy adults.

PubMed

Zhu, Chenghao H; Gertz, Erik R; Cai, Yimeng; Burri, Betty J

2016-07-01

Several studies suggest that β-cryptoxanthin has a greater plasma response from its common food sources than other carotenoids such as β-carotene and lycopene. The hypothesis of this study is that changes in plasma β-cryptoxanthin concentrations will be greater than changes in plasma β-carotene or lycopene concentrations even if these carotenoids are fed in a similar food matrix, such as citrus fruit. We tested this hypothesis by measuring changes in plasma concentrations of β-cryptoxanthin, lycopene, and β-carotene after feeding measured amounts of canned tangerines and pink grapefruit to healthy nonsmoking adult humans. Volunteers served as their own controls and received both citrus fruit treatments randomly. In the first study, 8 subjects ate single meals of 234-304g of tangerines or 60-540g of pink grapefruit. The second study compared changes in plasma carotenoid concentration caused by feeding 234g of tangerines or 540g of pink grapefruit to 11 subjects. Blood was collected 5 times within 24hours after each citrus meal. Carotenoid concentrations were analyzed by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Plasma β-cryptoxanthin concentrations increased within 5hours and then stabilized, remaining high throughout the 24hours measured. Plasma concentrations of lycopene and β-carotene did not change. These results show that β-cryptoxanthin concentrations increased after a citrus fruit meal, but lycopene and β-carotene concentrations did not change after a similar citrus fruit meal. These results support our hypothesis that changes in plasma β-cryptoxanthin are greater than changes in plasma lycopene or β-carotene, even when these carotenoids are fed in a similar food matrix. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Improvement of a plasma uniformity of the 2nd ion source of KSTAR neutral beam injector.

PubMed

Jeong, S H; Kim, T S; Lee, K W; Chang, D H; In, S R; Bae, Y S

2014-02-01

The 2nd ion source of KSTAR (Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research) NBI (Neutral Beam Injector) had been developed and operated since last year. A calorimetric analysis revealed that the heat load of the back plate of the ion source is relatively higher than that of the 1st ion source of KSTAR NBI. The spatial plasma uniformity of the ion source is not good. Therefore, we intended to identify factors affecting the uniformity of a plasma density and improve it. We estimated the effects of a direction of filament current and a magnetic field configuration of the plasma generator on the plasma uniformity. We also verified that the operation conditions of an ion source could change a uniformity of the plasma density of an ion source.

High Frequency Plasma Generators for Ion Thrusters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Divergilio, W. F.; Goede, H.; Fosnight, V. V.

1981-01-01

The results of a one year program to experimentally adapt two new types of high frequency plasma generators to Argon ion thrusters and to analytically study a third high frequency source concept are presented. Conventional 30 cm two grid ion extraction was utilized or proposed for all three sources. The two plasma generating methods selected for experimental study were a radio frequency induction (RFI) source, operating at about 1 MHz, and an electron cyclotron heated (ECH) plasma source operating at about 5 GHz. Both sources utilize multi-linecusp permanent magnet configurations for plasma confinement. The plasma characteristics, plasma loading of the rf antenna, and the rf frequency dependence of source efficiency and antenna circuit efficiency are described for the RFI Multi-cusp source. In a series of tests of this source at Lewis Research Center, minimum discharge losses of 220+/-10 eV/ion were obtained with propellant utilization of .45 at a beam current of 3 amperes. Possible improvement modifications are discussed.

Plasma Ion Sources for Atmospheric Pressure Ionization Mass Spectrometry.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Jian-Guo

1994-01-01

Atmospheric pressure ionization (API) sources using direct-current (DC) and radio-frequency (RF) plasma have been developed in this thesis work. These ion sources can provide stable discharge currents of ~ 1 mA, 2-3 orders of magnitude larger than that of the corona discharge, a widely used API source. The plasmas can be generated and maintained in 1 atm of various buffer gases by applying -500 to -1000 V (DC plasma) or 1-15 W with a frequency of 165 kHz (RF plasma) on the needle electrode. These ion sources have been used with liquid injection to detect various organic compounds of pharmaceutical, biotechnological and environmental interest. Key features of these ion sources include soft ionization with the protonated molecule as the largest peak, and superb sensitivity with detection limits in the low picogram or femtomole range and a linear dynamic range over ~4 orders of magnitude. The RF plasma has advantages over the DC plasma in its ability to operate in various buffer gases and to produce a more stable plasma. Factors influencing the performance of the ion sources have been studied, including RF power level, liquid flow rate, chamber temperature, solvent composition, and voltage affecting the collision induced dissociation (CID). Ionization of hydrocarbons by the RF plasma API source was also studied. Soft ionization is generally produced. To obtain high sensitivity, the ion source must be very dry and the needle-to-orifice distance must be small. Nitric oxide was used to enhance the sensitivity. The RF plasma source was then used for the analysis of hydrocarbons in auto emissions. Comparisons between the corona discharge and the RF plasma have been made in terms of discharge current, ion residence time, and the ion source model. The RF plasma source provides larger linear dynamic range and higher sensitivity than the corona discharge, due to its much larger discharge current. The RF plasma was also observed to provide longer ion residence times and was not limited by space-charge effect as in the corona source.

Back-diffusion plasma generator for ionosphere study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fang, H. K.; Oyama, K.-I.; Chen, A. B.

2017-11-01

To produce ionospheric plasma environments at ground level is essential to get information not only for the development of CubeSat-class spacecraft but also for the design of ionospheric plasma instruments and to confirm their performance. In this paper, we describe the principle of plasma generation and characteristics of the back-diffusion plasma source, which can produce in-lab plasma similar to the Earth’s ionosphere, E and F regions, conditions of electron and ion temperature and density. The ion and electron energy distributions of the plasma generated by a back-diffusion source are measured by means of a cleaned Langmuir probe and gridded particle energy analyzers. The ion motion in front of the source is investigated by a hard-sphere collision model in SIMION software and the simulation results are comparable with the findings of our experiment. Furthermore, plasma densities and ion temperatures at different positions in front of the source are also demonstrated. The back-diffusion source has been accommodated for ionospheric plasma productions in several Asian institutes. The plasma characteristics of the source shown in this paper will benefit space research groups in the development of space plasma instruments.

Hippophae rhamnoides L. Fruits Reduce the Oxidative Stress in Human Blood Platelets and Plasma.

PubMed

Olas, Beata; Kontek, Bogdan; Malinowska, Paulina; Żuchowski, Jerzy; Stochmal, Anna

2016-01-01

Effects of the phenolic fraction from Hippophae rhamnoides fruits on the production of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS, a marker of lipid peroxidation) and the generation of superoxide anion (O2 (-∙)) in human blood platelets (resting platelets and platelets stimulated by a strong physiological agonist, thrombin) were studied in vitro. We also examined antioxidant properties of this fraction against human plasma lipid peroxidation and protein carbonylation induced by a strong biological oxidant, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) or H2O2/Fe (a donor of hydroxyl radicals). The tested fraction of H. rhamnoides (0.5- 50 µg/mL; the incubation time: 15 and 60 min) inhibited lipid peroxidation induced by H2O2 or H2O2/Fe. The H. rhamnoides phenolic fraction inhibited not only plasma lipid peroxidation, but also plasma protein carbonylation stimulated by H2O2 or H2O2/Fe. Moreover, the level of O2 (-∙) in platelets significantly decreased. In comparative experiments, the H. rhamnoides fraction was a more effective antioxidant than aronia extract or grape seed extract (at the highest tested concentration, 50 µg/mL). The obtained results suggest that H. rhamnoides fruits may be a new, promising source of natural compounds with antioxidant and antiplatelet activity beneficial not only for healthy people, but also for those with oxidative stress-associated diseases.

Protein expression profiles of human lymph and plasma mapped by 2D-DIGE and 1D SDS–PAGE coupled with nanoLC–ESI–MS/MS bottom-up proteomics

PubMed Central

Clement, Cristina C.; Aphkhazava, David; Nieves, Edward; Callaway, Myrasol; Olszewski, Waldemar; Rotzschke, Olaf; Santambrogio, Laura

2013-01-01

In this study a proteomic approach was used to define the protein content of matched samples of afferent prenodal lymph and plasma derived from healthy volunteers. The analysis was performed using two analytical methodologies coupled with nanoliquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry: one-dimensional gel electrophoresis (1DEF nanoLC Orbitrap–ESI–MS/MS), and two-dimensional fluorescence difference-in-gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE nanoLC–ESI–MS/MS). The 253 significantly identified proteins (p<0.05), obtained from the tandem mass spectrometry data, were further analyzed with pathway analysis (IPA) to define the functional signature of prenodal lymph and matched plasma. The 1DEF coupled with nanoLC–MS–MS revealed that the common proteome between the two biological fluids (144 out of 253 proteins) was dominated by complement activation and blood coagulation components, transporters and protease inhibitors. The enriched proteome of human lymph (72 proteins) consisted of products derived from the extracellular matrix, apoptosis and cellular catabolism. In contrast, the enriched proteome of human plasma (37 proteins) consisted of soluble molecules of the coagulation system and cell–cell signaling factors. The functional networks associated with both common and source-distinctive proteomes highlight the principal biological activity of these immunologically relevant body fluids. PMID:23202415

High Power LaB6 Plasma Source Performance for the Lockheed Martin Compact Fusion Reactor Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heinrich, Jonathon

2016-10-01

Lockheed Martin's Compact Fusion Reactor (CFR) concept is a linear encapsulated ring cusp. Due to the complex field geometry, plasma injection into the device requires careful consideration. A high power thermionic plasma source (>0.25MW; >10A/cm2) has been developed with consideration to phase space for optimal coupling. We present the performance of the plasma source, comparison with alternative plasma sources, and plasma coupling with the CFR field configuration. ©2016 Lockheed Martin Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

Injection of auxiliary electrons for increasing the plasma density in highly charged and high intensity ion sources.

PubMed

Odorici, F; Malferrari, L; Montanari, A; Rizzoli, R; Mascali, D; Castro, G; Celona, L; Gammino, S; Neri, L

2016-02-01

Different electron guns based on cold- or hot-cathode technologies have been developed since 2009 at INFN for operating within ECR plasma chambers as sources of auxiliary electrons, with the aim of boosting the source performances by means of a higher plasma lifetime and density. Their application to microwave discharge ion sources, where plasma is not confined, has required an improvement of the gun design, in order to "screen" the cathode from the plasma particles. Experimental tests carried out on a plasma reactor show a boost of the plasma density, ranging from 10% to 90% when the electron guns are used, as explained by plasma diffusion models.

Plasma Sources for Medical Applications - A Comparison of Spot Like Plasmas and Large Area Plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weltmann, Klaus-Dieter

2015-09-01

Plasma applications in life science are currently emerging worldwide. Whereas today's commercially available plasma surgical technologies such as argon plasma coagulation (APC) or ablation are mainly based on lethal plasma effects on living systems, the newly emerging therapeutic applications will be based on selective, at least partially non-lethal, possibly stimulating plasma effects on living cells and tissue. Promising results could be obtained by different research groups worldwide revealing a huge potential for the application of low temperature atmospheric pressure plasma in fields such as tissue engineering, healing of chronic wounds, treatment of skin diseases, tumor treatment based on specific induction of apoptotic processes, inhibition of biofilm formation and direct action on biofilms or treatment of dental diseases. The development of suitable and reliable plasma sources for the different therapies requires an in-depth knowledge of their physics, chemistry and parameters. Therefore much basic research still needs to be conducted to minimize risk and to provide a scientific fundament for new plasma-based medical therapies. It is essential to perform a comprehensive assessment of physical and biological experiments to clarify minimum standards for plasma sources for applications in life science and for comparison of different sources. One result is the DIN-SPEC 91315, which is now open for further improvements. This contribution intends to give an overview on the status of commercial cold plasma sources as well as cold plasma sources still under development for medical use. It will discuss needs, prospects and approaches for the characterization of plasmas from different points of view. Regarding the manageability in everyday medical life, atmospheric pressure plasma jets (APPJ) and dielectric barrier discharges (DBD) are of special interest. A comprehensive risk-benefit assessment including the state of the art of commercial sources for medical use will be discussed.

Reverse-phase liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization/mass spectrometry for the quantification of pseudoephedrine in human plasma and application to a bioequivalence study.

PubMed

Kim, Jin-Ki; Jee, Jun-Pil; Park, Jeong-Sook; Kim, Hyung Tae; Kim, Chong-Kook

2011-01-01

A sensitive and selective reverse-phase liquid chromatography electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS) method was developed and validated to quantify pseudoephedrine (CAS 90-82-4) in human plasma. Phenacetin was used as the internal standard (I.S.). Sample preparation was performed with a deproteinization step using acetonitrile. Pseudoephedrine and I.S. were successfully separated using gradient elution with 0.5% trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) in water and 0.5% TFA in methanol at a flow-rate of 0.2 mL/min. Detection was performed on a single quadrupole mass spectrometer by a selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode via electrospray ionization (ESI) source. The ESI source was set at positive ionization mode. The ion signals of m/z 166.3 and 180.2 were measured for the protonated molecular ions of pseudoephedrine and I.S., respectively. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) of pseudoephedrine in human plasma was 10 ng/mL and good linearity was observed in the range of concentrations 10-500 ng/mL (R2 = 1). The intra-day accuracy of the drug containing plasma samples was more than 97.60% with a precision of 3.99-11.82%. The inter-day accuracy was 99.36% or more, with a precision of 7.65-18.42%. By using this analytical method, the bioequivalence study of the pseudoephedrine preparation was performed and evaluated by statistical analysis of the log transformed mean ratios of pharmacokinetic parameters. All the results fulfilled the standard criteria of bioequivalence, being within the 80-125% range which is required by the Korea FDA, US FDA, and EMEA to conclude bioequivalence. Consequently, the developed reverse-phase LC-ESI-MS method was successfully applied to bioequivalence studies of pseudoephedrine in healthy male volunteers.

The Earth: Plasma Sources, Losses, and Transport Processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Welling, Daniel T.; André, Mats; Dandouras, Iannis; Delcourt, Dominique; Fazakerley, Andrew; Fontaine, Dominique; Foster, John; Ilie, Raluca; Kistler, Lynn; Lee, Justin H.; Liemohn, Michael W.; Slavin, James A.; Wang, Chih-Ping; Wiltberger, Michael; Yau, Andrew

2015-10-01

This paper reviews the state of knowledge concerning the source of magnetospheric plasma at Earth. Source of plasma, its acceleration and transport throughout the system, its consequences on system dynamics, and its loss are all discussed. Both observational and modeling advances since the last time this subject was covered in detail (Hultqvist et al., Magnetospheric Plasma Sources and Losses, 1999) are addressed.

Aronia melanocarpa extract suppresses the biotoxicity of homocysteine and its metabolite on the hemostatic activity of fibrinogen and plasma.

PubMed

Malinowska, Joanna; Babicz, Karolina; Olas, Beata; Stochmal, Anna; Oleszek, Wieslaw

2012-07-01

Aronia melanocarpa fruits (Rosaceae) are one of the richest plant sources of phenolic substances, and it has been shown to have various biological activities. Berries of A. melanocarpa (chokeberry) have been supposed to be beneficial for the prevention of cardiovascular events. In this study the influence of aronia extract on the clot formation (using human plasma and purified fibrinogen) and the fibrin lysis during the model of hyperhomocysteinemia was investigated. Hyperhomocysteinemia was induced using a reduced form of Hcys (at final dose of 0.1mM) and the most reactive form of Hcys - its cyclic thioester, homocysteine thiolactone (HTL, 1 μM). The aim of our study in vitro was also to investigate the modifications of human plasma total proteins and the oxidative stress (by measuring the total antioxidant level - TAS) in plasma after incubation with Hcys, HTL and/or aronia extract. The biological properties of aronia extract were compared with the action of a well characterized antioxidative commercial polyphenol - resveratrol (3,4',5- trihydroxystilbene). The HTL, like its precursor, Hcys stimulated polymerization of fibrinogen. The results also demonstrated that Hcys (0.1mM) and HLT at lower doses than Hcys (1 μM) reduced the fibrin lysis in human plasma. Moreover, Hcys and HTL change the level of thiol and amino groups in plasma total proteins and induce the oxidative stress in plasma. Our results indicate that aronia extract reduced the biotoxicity action of Hcys and HTL on hemostatic properties of fibrinogen or plasma, suggesting its possible protective properties in hyperhomocysteinemia - induced cardiovascular diseases. Moreover, our results showed that the extract from berries of A. melanocarpa due to antioxidant action, significantly reduced the oxidative stress (measured by TAS) in plasma during the model of hyperhomocysteinemia. In the comparative studies, the extract from berries of A. melanocarpa and reseveratrol had similar protective properties. It gives hopes for development of diet supplements, which may be preventing thrombosis in pathological states where plasma procoagulant activity and oxidative stress are observed e.g. in hyperhomocysteinemia. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Plasma characteristics of direct current enhanced cylindrical inductively coupled plasma source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yue, HUA; Jian, SONG; Zeyu, HAO; Chunsheng, REN

2018-06-01

Experimental results of a direct current enhanced inductively coupled plasma (DCE-ICP) source which consists of a typical cylindrical ICP source and a plate-to-grid DC electrode are reported. With the use of this new source, the plasma characteristic parameters, namely, electron density, electron temperature and plasma uniformity, are measured by Langmuir floating double probe. It is found that DC discharge enhances the electron density and decreases the electron temperature, dramatically. Moreover, the plasma uniformity is obviously improved with the operation of DC and radio frequency (RF) hybrid discharge. Furthermore, the nonlinear enhancement effect of electron density with DC + RF hybrid discharge is confirmed. The presented observation indicates that the DCE-ICP source provides an effective method to obtain high-density uniform plasma, which is desirable for practical industrial applications.

The HelCat dual-source plasma device.

PubMed

Lynn, Alan G; Gilmore, Mark; Watts, Christopher; Herrea, Janis; Kelly, Ralph; Will, Steve; Xie, Shuangwei; Yan, Lincan; Zhang, Yue

2009-10-01

The HelCat (Helicon-Cathode) device has been constructed to support a broad range of basic plasma science experiments relevant to the areas of solar physics, laboratory astrophysics, plasma nonlinear dynamics, and turbulence. These research topics require a relatively large plasma source capable of operating over a broad region of parameter space with a plasma duration up to at least several milliseconds. To achieve these parameters a novel dual-source system was developed utilizing both helicon and thermionic cathode sources. Plasma parameters of n(e) approximately 0.5-50 x 10(18) m(-3) and T(e) approximately 3-12 eV allow access to a wide range of collisionalities important to the research. The HelCat device and initial characterization of plasma behavior during dual-source operation are described.

Qualitative in vitro NMR analysis of creatine ethyl ester pronutrient in human plasma.

PubMed

Giese, M W; Lecher, C S

2009-10-01

There are a number of forms of creatine available that attempt to improve the solubility and permeability, with the anticipation this will result in an improved pharmacokinetic profile and ultimately an enhanced ergogenic response. Previous research has shown that the different salt forms can improve solubility resulting in slightly altered pharmacokinetic profiles, however specific data exploring the conversion of esterified derivatives to creatine is lacking. The purpose of this study was to examine the assertion that creatine ethyl ester undergoes enzymatic conversion to creatine in human tissues. The IN VITRO response of creatine ethyl ester to incubation in human plasma was examined by H-NMR analysis. Lyophilized human plasma was reconstituted in D2O and phosphate-buffered saline and 1.5 mg of the analyte was added. Following incubation at 37 degrees C for 4 h and subsequent protein precipitation, the supernatant was analyzed by NMR, utilizing the diagnostic chemical shift of the methylene signal to determine the species present in solution, I.E. creatine ethyl ester, creatine, or creatinine. Both creatine and creatinine were run in parallel as control experiments and each assay was run in triplicate. As expected both creatine and creatinine remained unchanged. However, conversion of creatine ethyl ester to creatine by the esterases in human plasma was not observed to any detectable extent and the only species detected after the incubation period was creatinine. While not a definitive characterization of the IN VIVO behavior, these results strongly warrant a complete IN VIVO pharmacokinetic analysis of creatine ethyl ester since it appears these "pronutrients" may actually provide large exogenous sources of pharmacologically inactive creatinine rather than ergogenic creatine.

Asialofetuin liposome-mediated human alpha1-antitrypsin gene transfer in vivo results in stationary long-term gene expression.

PubMed

Dasí, F; Benet, M; Crespo, J; Crespo, A; Aliño, S F

2001-05-01

The development of nonviral vectors for in vivo gene delivery to hepatocytes is an interesting topic in view of their safety and tremendous gene therapy potential. Since cationic liposomes and liposome uptake by receptor-mediated mechanisms could offer advantages in the efficacy of liposome-mediated gene transfer, we studied the effect of liposome charge (anionic vs. cationic) and the covalently coupled asialofetuin ligand on the liposome surface in mediating human alpha1-antitrypsin (hAAT) gene transfer to mice in vivo. The changes in liposome charge were made by adding the following lipids to the backbone liposomes: anionic phosphatidylserine, cationic N-[1-(2,3-dioleoyloxy)propyl]-N,N,N-trimethyl-ammonium methylsulfate or a lipopeptide synthesized from dipalmitoylphosphatidylethanolamine and covalently coupled to the cationic nuclear localization signal peptide. Two plasmids containing the hAAT gene were used: pTG7101, containing the complete genomic sequence of the human gene driven by the natural promoter, and p216, containing the human hAAT cDNA under the control of the CMV promoter. The results indicate that both untargeted anionic and cationic liposomes mediate plasma levels of hAAT that decline over time. However, asialofetuin liposomes increase the plasma levels of hAAT and can mediate long-term gene expression (>12 months) with stationary plasma levels of protein. Results from quantitative and qualitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction match those from protein plasma levels and confirm both the human origin of the message and the liver as source of the protein. The use of asialofetuin liposomes in hepatic gene therapy may both increase and prolong in vivo gene expression of hAAT and other clinically important genes.

High throughput image cytometry micronucleus assay to investigate the presence or absence of mutagenic effects of cold physical plasma.

PubMed

Bekeschus, Sander; Schmidt, Anke; Kramer, Axel; Metelmann, Hans-Robert; Adler, Frank; von Woedtke, Thomas; Niessner, Felix; Weltmann, Klaus-Dieter; Wende, Kristian

2018-05-01

Promising cold physical plasma sources have been developed in the field of plasma medicine. An important prerequisite to their clinical use is lack of genotoxic effects in cells. During optimization of one or even different plasma sources for a specific application, large numbers of samples need to be analyzed. There are soft and easy-to-assess markers for genotoxic stress such as phosphorylation of histone H2AX (γH2AX) but only few tests are accredited by the OECD with regard to mutagenicity detection. The micronucleus (MN) assay is among them but often requires manual counting of many thousands of cells per sample under the microscope. A high-throughput MN assay is presented using image flow cytometry and image analysis software. A human lymphocyte cell line was treated with plasma generated with ten different feed gas conditions corresponding to distinct reactive species patterns that were investigated for their genotoxic potential. Several millions of cells were automatically analyzed by a MN quantification strategy outlined in detail in this work. Our data demonstrates the absence of newly formed MN in any feed gas condition using the atmospheric pressure plasma jet kINPen. As positive control, ionizing radiation gave a significant 5-fold increase in micronucleus frequency. Thus, this assay is suitable to assess the genotoxic potential in large sample sets of cells exposed chemical or physical agents including plasmas in an efficient, reliable, and semiautomated manner. Environ. Mol. Mutagen. 59:268-277, 2018. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Injection of auxiliary electrons for increasing the plasma density in highly charged and high intensity ion sources

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Odorici, F., E-mail: fabrizio.odorici@bo.infn.it; Malferrari, L.; Montanari, A.

Different electron guns based on cold- or hot-cathode technologies have been developed since 2009 at INFN for operating within ECR plasma chambers as sources of auxiliary electrons, with the aim of boosting the source performances by means of a higher plasma lifetime and density. Their application to microwave discharge ion sources, where plasma is not confined, has required an improvement of the gun design, in order to “screen” the cathode from the plasma particles. Experimental tests carried out on a plasma reactor show a boost of the plasma density, ranging from 10% to 90% when the electron guns are used,more » as explained by plasma diffusion models.« less

Plasma X-Ray Sources for Lithography

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-05-12

in evaluating various plasma sources. In addition, a brief analysis is given of three devices, or systems, used to produce such plasmas: the electron beam- sliding spark, the dense plasma focus and the laser produced plasma.

Nanoscale control of energy and matter in plasma-surface interactions: towards energy-efficient nanotech

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ostrikov, Kostya

2010-11-01

This presentation focuses on the plasma issues related to the solution of the grand challenge of directing energy and matter at nanoscales. This ability is critical for the renewable energy and energy-efficient technologies for sustainable future development. It will be discussed how to use environmentally and human health benign non-equilibrium plasma-solid systems and control the elementary processes of plasma-surface interactions to direct the fluxes of energy and matter at multiple temporal and spatial scales. In turn, this makes it possible to achieve the deterministic synthesis of self- organised arrays of metastable nanostructures in the size range beyond the reach of the present-day nanofabrication. Such structures have tantalising prospects to enhance performance of nanomaterials in virtually any area of human activity yet remain almost inaccessible because the Nature's energy minimisation rules allow only a small number of stable equilibrium states. By using precisely controlled and kinetically fast nanoscale transfer of energy and matter under non-equilibrium conditions and harnessing numerous plasma- specific controls of species creation, delivery to the surface, nucleation and large-scale self-organisation of nuclei and nanostructures, the arrays of metastable nanostructures can be created, arranged, stabilised, and further processed to meet the specific requirements of the envisaged applications. These approaches will eventually lead to faster, unprecedentedly- clean, human-health-friendly, and energy-efficient nanoscale synthesis and processing technologies for the next-generation renewable energy and light sources, biomedical devices, information and communication systems, as well as advanced functional materials for applications ranging from basic food, water, health and clean environment needs to national security and space missions.

Contribution of intravascular versus interstitial purines and nitric oxide in the regulation of exercise hyperaemia in humans

PubMed Central

Hellsten, Y; Nyberg, M; Mortensen, S P

2012-01-01

The regulation of blood flow to skeletal muscle involves a complex interaction between several locally formed vasodilators that are produced both in the skeletal muscle interstitium and intravascularly. The gas nitric oxide (NO) and the purines ATP and adenosine, are potent vasodilators that are formed by multiple cell types and released into the skeletal muscle interstitium and in plasma in response to muscle contraction. Cellular sources of ATP and NO in plasma are erythrocytes and endothelial cells, whereas interstitial sources are skeletal muscle cells and endothelial cells. Adenosine originates primarily from extracellular degradation of ATP. During exercise the concentrations of ATP and adenosine increase markedly in the interstitium with smaller increases occurring in plasma, and thus the interstitial concentration during exercise is severalfold higher than in plasma. The concentration of NO metabolites (NOx) in interstitium and plasma does not change during exercise and is similar in the two compartments. Adenosine and NO have been shown to contribute to exercise hyperaemia whereas the role of ATP remains unclear due to lack of specific purinergic receptor blockers. The relative role of intravascular versus interstitial vasodilators is not known but evidence suggests that both compartments are important. In cardiovascular disease, a reduced capacity to form adenosine in the muscle interstitium may be a contributing factor in increased peripheral vascular resistance. PMID:22733661

Design of a novel high efficiency antenna for helicon plasma sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fazelpour, S.; Chakhmachi, A.; Iraji, D.

2018-06-01

A new configuration for an antenna, which increases the absorption power and plasma density, is proposed for helicon plasma sources. The influence of the electromagnetic wave pattern symmetry on the plasma density and absorption power in a helicon plasma source with a common antenna (Nagoya) is analysed by using the standard COMSOL Multiphysics 5.3 software. In contrast to the theoretical model prediction, the electromagnetic wave does not represent a symmetric pattern for the common Nagoya antenna. In this work, a new configuration for an antenna is proposed which refines the asymmetries of the wave pattern in helicon plasma sources. The plasma parameters such as plasma density and absorption rate for a common Nagoya antenna and our proposed antenna under the same conditions are studied using simulations. In addition, the plasma density of seven operational helicon plasma source devices, having a common Nagoya antenna, is compared with the simulation results of our proposed antenna and the common Nagoya antenna. The simulation results show that the density of the plasma, which is produced by using our proposed antenna, is approximately twice in comparison to the plasma density produced by using the common Nagoya antenna. In fact, the simulation results indicate that the electric and magnetic fields symmetry of the helicon wave plays a vital role in increasing wave-particle coupling. As a result, wave-particle energy exchange and the plasma density of helicon plasma sources will be increased.

Antioxidant-restricted diet reduces plasma nonesterified fatty acids in trained athletes.

PubMed

Watson, Trent A; Blake, Robert J; Callister, Robin; Garg, Manohar L

2005-04-01

Nonesterified FA (NEFA) are a major fuel source for humans at rest and during moderate exercise. The effect of dietary antioxidant restriction on plasma NEFA levels and exercise performance in trained athletes was examined. Seventeen athletes followed a 2-wk restricted-antioxidant (R-AO) diet, which resulted in a threefold reduction in antioxidant intake (ascorbic acid, 139 to 49 mg; beta-carotene, 5093 to 1142 microg) and a significant (P = 0.001) reduction in the plasma NEFA. The amount and types of fat consumed were not different between the R-AO and habitual diets. Exercise time to exhaustion was not affected by the R-AO diet, but rating of perceived exertion (RPE) was significantly (P = 0.03) elevated. The increase in RPE may have occurred as a result of the R-AO diet and subsequent reduction in plasma NEFA; however, further research is required to confirm this conclusion.

Maternal blood, plasma, and breast milk lead: lactational transfer and contribution to infant exposure.

PubMed

Ettinger, Adrienne S; Roy, Ananya; Amarasiriwardena, Chitra J; Smith, Donald; Lupoli, Nicola; Mercado-García, Adriana; Lamadrid-Figueroa, Hector; Tellez-Rojo, Martha Maria; Hu, Howard; Hernández-Avila, Mauricio

2014-01-01

Human milk is a potential source of lead exposure. Yet lactational transfer of lead from maternal blood into breast milk and its contribution to infant lead burden remains poorly understood. We explored the dose-response relationships between maternal blood, plasma, and breast milk to better understand lactational transfer of lead from blood and plasma into milk and, ultimately, to the breastfeeding infant. We measured lead in 81 maternal blood, plasma, and breast milk samples at 1 month postpartum and in 60 infant blood samples at 3 months of age. Milk-to-plasma (M/P) lead ratios were calculated. Multivariate linear, piecewise, and generalized additive models were used to examine dose-response relationships between blood, plasma, and milk lead levels. Maternal lead levels (mean±SD) were as follows: blood: 7.7±4.0 μg/dL; plasma: 0.1±0.1 μg/L; milk: 0.8±0.7 μg/L. The average M/P lead ratio was 7.7 (range, 0.6-39.8) with 97% of the ratios being >1. The dose-response relationship between plasma lead and M/P ratio was nonlinear (empirical distribution function=6.5, p=0.0006) with the M/P ratio decreasing by 16.6 and 0.6 per 0.1 μg/L of plasma lead, respectively, below and above 0.1 μg/L plasma lead. Infant blood lead level (3.4±2.2 μg/dL) increased by 1.8 μg/dL per 1 μg/L milk lead (p<0.0001, R2=0.3). The M/P ratio for lead in humans is substantially higher than previously reported, and transfer of lead from plasma to milk may be higher at lower levels of plasma lead. Breast milk is an important determinant of lead burden among breastfeeding infants.

High Power Helicon Plasma Source for Plasma Processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prager, James; Ziemba, Timothy; Miller, Kenneth E.

2015-09-01

Eagle Harbor Technologies (EHT), Inc. is developing a high power helicon plasma source. The high power nature and pulsed neutral gas make this source unique compared to traditional helicon source. These properties produce a plasma flow along the magnetic field lines, and therefore allow the source to be decoupled from the reaction chamber. Neutral gas can be injected downstream, which allows for precision control of the ion-neutral ratio at the surface of the sample. Although operated at high power, the source has demonstrated very low impurity production. This source has applications to nanoparticle productions, surface modification, and ionized physical vapor deposition.

Development of a 1-m plasma source for heavy ion beam charge neutralization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Efthimion, Philip C.; Gilson, Erik P.; Grisham, Larry; Davidson, Ronald C.; Yu, Simon; Waldron, William; Grant Logan, B.

2005-05-01

Highly ionized plasmas are being employed as a medium for charge neutralizing heavy ion beams in order to focus to a small spot size. Calculations suggest that plasma at a density of 1-100 times the ion beam density and at a length ˜0.1-1 m would be suitable for achieving a high level of charge neutralization. A radio frequency (RF) source was constructed at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) in support of the joint Neutralized Transport Experiment (NTX) at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) to study ion beam neutralization. Pulsing the source enabled operation at pressures ˜10 -6 Torr with plasma densities of 10 11 cm -3. Near 100% ionization was achieved. The plasma was 10 cm in length, but future experiments require a source 1 m long. The RF source does not easily scale to the length. Consequently, large-volume plasma sources based upon ferroelectric ceramics are being considered. These sources have the advantage of being able to increase the length of the plasma and operate at low neutral pressures. The source will utilize the ferroelectric ceramic BaTiO 3 to form metal plasma. A 1 m long section of the drift tube inner surface of NTX will be covered with ceramic. A high voltage (˜1-5 kV) is applied between the drift tube and the front surface of the ceramic by placing a wire grid on the front surface. Plasma densities of 10 12 cm -3 and neutral pressures ˜10 -6 Torr are expected. A test stand to produce 20 cm long plasma is being constructed and will be tested before a 1 m long source is developed.

Electron-ion hybrid instability experiment upgrades to the Auburn Linear Experiment for Instability Studies.

PubMed

DuBois, A M; Arnold, I; Thomas, E; Tejero, E; Amatucci, W E

2013-04-01

The Auburn Linear EXperiment for Instability Studies (ALEXIS) is a laboratory plasma physics experiment used to study spatially inhomogeneous flows in a magnetized cylindrical plasma column that are driven by crossed electric (E) and magnetic (B) fields. ALEXIS was recently upgraded to include a small, secondary plasma source for a new dual source, interpenetrating plasma experiment. Using two plasma sources allows for highly localized electric fields to be made at the boundary of the two plasmas, inducing strong E × B velocity shear in the plasma, which can give rise to a regime of instabilities that have not previously been studied in ALEXIS. The dual plasma configuration makes it possible to have independent control over the velocity shear and the density gradient. This paper discusses the recent addition of the secondary plasma source to ALEXIS, as well as the plasma diagnostics used to measure electric fields and electron densities.

Fibronectin in cell adhesion and migration via N-glycosylation

PubMed Central

Hsiao, Cheng-Te; Cheng, Hung-Wei; Huang, Chi-Ming; Li, Hao-Ru; Ou, Meng-Hsin; Huang, Jie-Rong; Khoo, Kay-Hooi; Yu, Helen Wenshin; Chen, Yin-Quan; Wang, Yang-Kao; Chiou, Arthur; Kuo, Jean-Cheng

2017-01-01

Directed cell migration is an important step in effective wound healing and requires the dynamic control of the formation of cell-extracellular matrix interactions. Plasma fibronectin is an extracellular matrix glycoprotein present in blood plasma that plays crucial roles in modulating cellular adhesion and migration and thereby helping to mediate all steps of wound healing. In order to seek safe sources of plasma fibronectin for its practical use in wound dressing, we isolated fibronectin from human (homo) and porcine plasma and demonstrated that both have a similar ability as a suitable substrate for the stimulation of cell adhesion and for directing cell migration. In addition, we also defined the N-glycosylation sites and N-glycans present on homo and porcine plasma fibronectin. These N-glycosylation modifications of the plasma fibronectin synergistically support the integrin-mediated signals to bring about mediating cellular adhesion and directed cell migration. This study not only determines the important function of N-glycans in both homo and porcine plasma fibronectin-mediated cell adhesion and directed cell migration, but also reveals the potential applications of porcine plasma fibronectin if it was applied as a material for clinical wound healing and tissue repair. PMID:29050309

Proceedings of the 10th international workshop on ECR ion sources

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Meyer, F W; Kirkpatrick, M I

This report contains papers on the following topics: Recent Developments and Future Projects on ECR Ion Sources; Operation of the New KVI ECR Ion Source at 10 GHz; Operational Experience and Status of the INS SF-ECR Ion Source; Results of the New ECR4'' 14.5 GHz ECRIS; Preliminary Performance of the AECR; Experimental Study of the Parallel and Perpendicular Particle Losses from an ECRIS Plasma; Plasma Instability in Electron Cyclotron Resonance Heated Ion Sources; The Hyperbolic Energy Analyzer; Status of ECR Source Development; The New 10 GHz CAPRICE Source; First Operation of the Texas A M ECR Ion Source; Recent Developmentsmore » of the RIKEN ECR Ion Sources; The 14 GHz CAPRICE Source; Characteristics and Potential Applications of an ORNL Microwave ECR Multicusp Plasma Ion Source; ECRIPAC: The Production and Acceleration of Multiply Charged Ions Using an ECR Plasma; ECR Source for the HHIRF Tandem Accelerator; Feasibility Studies for an ECR-Generated Plasma Stripper; Production of Ion Beams by using the ECR Plasmas Cathode; A Single Stage ECR Source for Efficient Production of Radioactive Ion Beams; The Single Staged ECR Source at the TRIUMF Isotope Separator TISOL; The Continuous Wave, Optically Pumped H{sup {minus}} Source; The H{sup +} ECR Source for the LAMPF Optically Pumped Polarized Ion Source; Present Status of the Warsaw CUSP ECR Ion Source; An ECR Source for Negative Ion Production; GYRAC-D: A Device for a 200 keV ECR Plasma Production and Accumulation; Status Report of the 14.4 GHZ ECR in Legnaro; Status of JYFL-ECRIS; Report on the Uppsala ECRIS Facility and Its Planned Use for Atomic Physics; A 10 GHz ECR Ion Source for Ion-Electron and Ion-Atom Collision Studies; and Status of the ORNL ECR Source Facility for Multicharged Ion Collision Research.« less

A review of three stand-alone topical thrombins for surgical hemostasis.

PubMed

Cheng, Christine M; Meyer-Massetti, Carla; Kayser, Steven R

2009-01-01

Topical thrombins are active hemostatic agents that can be used to minimize blood loss during surgery. Before 2007, the only topical thrombins available were derived from bovine plasma. Antibody formation to bovine thrombin and/or factor V, with subsequent risk of cross-reactivity with human factor V, and hemorrhagic complications associated with human factor-V deficiencies have been described in case reports of surgeries in which bovine thrombins were used. This risk is now included in the boxed warning section of the bovine thrombin prescribing information. In 2007 and 2008, 2 new topical thrombins from nonbovine sources received approval for use from the US Food and Drug Administration. The 3 active topical thrombins that are currently marketed are bovine plasma-derived thrombin, human plasma-derived thrombin, and human recombinant thrombin. The purpose of this review was to evaluate the literature on the efficacy and safety of topical thrombins and discuss the pharmacoeconomic considerations associated with their use. PubMed, EMBASE, and International Pharmaceutical Abstracts were searched for relevant papers published in English through October 10,2008, using the terms thrombin, human recombinant thrombin, bovine thrombin, plasma derived thrombin, and topical thrombin. Manufacturer-provided materials were also reviewed. Abstracts and unpublished data, as well as evaluations of sealants, adhesives, glues, and other hemostats that contain thrombin mixed with fibrinogen and other clotting factors, were excluded. Four randomized, double-blind studies involving the active, stand-alone topical thrombins were found. The bovine thrombin involved in these studies was the predecessor to the currently marketed, highly purified bovine formulation. No studies comparing the human products, studies involving the highly purified bovine preparation, or placebo-controlled studies involving bovine thrombin were found. In a Phase III comparison of human recombinant thrombin and bovine thrombin, the percentages of patients who achieved hemostasis within 10 minutes of topical thrombin application were 95.4% and 95.1%, respectively (95% CI, -3.7 to 5.0). The incidence of hemostasis within 10 minutes was also similar in a Phase III comparison of human plasma-derived thrombin and bovine thrombin (both, 97.4% [95% CI, 0.96 to 1.05]). In the study that compared human recombinant and bovine thrombin, the incidence of antiproduct antibody formation was 21.5% (43/200) in the bovine thrombin group and 1.5% (3/198) in the human recombinant thrombin group (P < 0.001); patients with antibodies to bovine thrombin had numerically higher incidences of bleeding or thromboembolic events than did patients without these antibodies (19% vs 13%; P value not reported). Human plasma-derived thrombin is available as a frozen sterile solution that must be thawed before application, whereas the human recombinant and bovine plasma-derived products are supplied as unrefrigerated sterile powders that must be reconstituted before use. The human thrombins are more costly than bovine thrombin on a per-vial basis. The average wholesale prices (US $, 2008) for 5000-IU vials of bovine thrombin and human recombinant thrombin were $87.85 and $103.20, respectively; the average wholesale price for a 4000- to 6000-IU vial of human plasma-derived thrombin was $96.00. Topical thrombins vary in the ways in which they are manufactured and their safety profiles, storage requirements, and costs. Human recombinant thrombin and human plasma-derived thrombin have each been shown to have hemostatic efficacy comparable to that of bovine thrombin. Bovine thrombin carries the risk of formation of cross-reactive antibodies to bovine thrombin, factor V, and other impurities that may be present in these formulations. Immunogenicity data for the currently marketed, highly purified bovine thrombin relative to older formulations of bovine thrombin could not be found. Whether the potential safety advantage justifies the added cost of the human products remains to be established.

Dependence of the source performance on plasma parameters at the BATMAN test facility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wimmer, C.; Fantz, U.

2015-04-01

The investigation of the dependence of the source performance (high jH-, low je) for optimum Cs conditions on the plasma parameters at the BATMAN (Bavarian Test MAchine for Negative hydrogen ions) test facility is desirable in order to find key parameters for the operation of the source as well as to deepen the physical understanding. The most relevant source physics takes place in the extended boundary layer, which is the plasma layer with a thickness of several cm in front of the plasma grid: the production of H-, its transport through the plasma and its extraction, inevitably accompanied by the co-extraction of electrons. Hence, a link of the source performance with the plasma parameters in the extended boundary layer is expected. In order to characterize electron and negative hydrogen ion fluxes in the extended boundary layer, Cavity Ring-Down Spectroscopy and Langmuir probes have been applied for the measurement of the H- density and the determination of the plasma density, the plasma potential and the electron temperature, respectively. The plasma potential is of particular importance as it determines the sheath potential profile at the plasma grid: depending on the plasma grid bias relative to the plasma potential, a transition in the plasma sheath from an electron repelling to an electron attracting sheath takes place, influencing strongly the electron fraction of the bias current and thus the amount of co-extracted electrons. Dependencies of the source performance on the determined plasma parameters are presented for the comparison of two source pressures (0.6 Pa, 0.45 Pa) in hydrogen operation. The higher source pressure of 0.6 Pa is a standard point of operation at BATMAN with external magnets, whereas the lower pressure of 0.45 Pa is closer to the ITER requirements (p ≤ 0.3 Pa).

Effect of remote inductively coupled plasma (ICP) on the electron energy probability function of an in-tandem main ICP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Jaewon; Kim, Kyung-Hyun; Chung, Chin-Wook

2017-02-01

The remote plasma has been generally used as the auxiliary plasma source for indirect plasma processes such as cleaning or ashing. When tandem plasma sources that contain main and remote plasma sources are discharged, the main plasma is affected by the remote plasma and vice versa. Charged particles can move between two chambers due to the potential difference between the two plasmas. For this reason, the electron energy possibility function of the main plasma can be controlled by adjusting the remote plasma state. In our study, low energy electrons in the main plasma are effectively heated with varying remote plasma powers, and high energy electrons which overcome potential differences between two plasmas—are exchanged with no remarkable change in the plasma density and the effective electron temperature.

Optimizing laser produced plasmas for efficient extreme ultraviolet and soft X-ray light sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sizyuk, Tatyana; Hassanein, Ahmed

2014-08-01

Photon sources produced by laser beams with moderate laser intensities, up to 1014 W/cm2, are being developed for many industrial applications. The performance requirements for high volume manufacture devices necessitate extensive experimental research supported by theoretical plasma analysis and modeling predictions. We simulated laser produced plasma sources currently being developed for several applications such as extreme ultraviolet lithography using 13.5% ± 1% nm bandwidth, possibly beyond extreme ultraviolet lithography using 6.× nm wavelengths, and water-window microscopy utilizing 2.48 nm (La-α) and 2.88 nm (He-α) emission. We comprehensively modeled plasma evolution from solid/liquid tin, gadolinium, and nitrogen targets as three promising materials for the above described sources, respectively. Results of our analysis for plasma characteristics during the entire course of plasma evolution showed the dependence of source conversion efficiency (CE), i.e., laser energy to photons at the desired wavelength, on plasma electron density gradient. Our results showed that utilizing laser intensities which produce hotter plasma than the optimum emission temperatures allows increasing CE for all considered sources that, however, restricted by the reabsorption processes around the main emission region and this restriction is especially actual for the 6.× nm sources.

The human plasma-metabolome: Reference values in 800 French healthy volunteers; impact of cholesterol, gender and age

PubMed Central

Al-Salameh, Abdallah; Croixmarie, Vincent; Masson, Perrine; Corruble, Emmanuelle; Fève, Bruno; Colle, Romain; Ripoll, Laurent; Walther, Bernard; Boursier-Neyret, Claire; Werner, Erwan; Becquemont, Laurent; Chanson, Philippe

2017-01-01

Metabolomic approaches are increasingly used to identify new disease biomarkers, yet normal values of many plasma metabolites remain poorly defined. The aim of this study was to define the “normal” metabolome in healthy volunteers. We included 800 French volunteers aged between 18 and 86, equally distributed according to sex, free of any medication and considered healthy on the basis of their medical history, clinical examination and standard laboratory tests. We quantified 185 plasma metabolites, including amino acids, biogenic amines, acylcarnitines, phosphatidylcholines, sphingomyelins and hexose, using tandem mass spectrometry with the Biocrates AbsoluteIDQ p180 kit. Principal components analysis was applied to identify the main factors responsible for metabolome variability and orthogonal projection to latent structures analysis was employed to confirm the observed patterns and identify pattern-related metabolites. We established a plasma metabolite reference dataset for 144/185 metabolites. Total blood cholesterol, gender and age were identified as the principal factors explaining metabolome variability. High total blood cholesterol levels were associated with higher plasma sphingomyelins and phosphatidylcholines concentrations. Compared to women, men had higher concentrations of creatinine, branched-chain amino acids and lysophosphatidylcholines, and lower concentrations of sphingomyelins and phosphatidylcholines. Elderly healthy subjects had higher sphingomyelins and phosphatidylcholines plasma levels than young subjects. We established reference human metabolome values in a large and well-defined population of French healthy volunteers. This study provides an essential baseline for defining the “normal” metabolome and its main sources of variation. PMID:28278231

The human plasma-metabolome: Reference values in 800 French healthy volunteers; impact of cholesterol, gender and age.

PubMed

Trabado, Séverine; Al-Salameh, Abdallah; Croixmarie, Vincent; Masson, Perrine; Corruble, Emmanuelle; Fève, Bruno; Colle, Romain; Ripoll, Laurent; Walther, Bernard; Boursier-Neyret, Claire; Werner, Erwan; Becquemont, Laurent; Chanson, Philippe

2017-01-01

Metabolomic approaches are increasingly used to identify new disease biomarkers, yet normal values of many plasma metabolites remain poorly defined. The aim of this study was to define the "normal" metabolome in healthy volunteers. We included 800 French volunteers aged between 18 and 86, equally distributed according to sex, free of any medication and considered healthy on the basis of their medical history, clinical examination and standard laboratory tests. We quantified 185 plasma metabolites, including amino acids, biogenic amines, acylcarnitines, phosphatidylcholines, sphingomyelins and hexose, using tandem mass spectrometry with the Biocrates AbsoluteIDQ p180 kit. Principal components analysis was applied to identify the main factors responsible for metabolome variability and orthogonal projection to latent structures analysis was employed to confirm the observed patterns and identify pattern-related metabolites. We established a plasma metabolite reference dataset for 144/185 metabolites. Total blood cholesterol, gender and age were identified as the principal factors explaining metabolome variability. High total blood cholesterol levels were associated with higher plasma sphingomyelins and phosphatidylcholines concentrations. Compared to women, men had higher concentrations of creatinine, branched-chain amino acids and lysophosphatidylcholines, and lower concentrations of sphingomyelins and phosphatidylcholines. Elderly healthy subjects had higher sphingomyelins and phosphatidylcholines plasma levels than young subjects. We established reference human metabolome values in a large and well-defined population of French healthy volunteers. This study provides an essential baseline for defining the "normal" metabolome and its main sources of variation.

[Effects of cornel iridoid glycoside on activity of cholinesterases in vitro].

PubMed

Chu, Si-Juan; Zhang, Lan; Liu, Gang; Zhou, Wen-Xia; Li, Lin

2013-05-01

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of cornel iridoid glycoside (CIG) on the activity of cholinesterases in vitro, and to investigate the mechanism of CIG's treating Alzheimer's disease (AD). The sources of cholinesterases were prepared from human blood cells, rat brain homogenate and human blood plasma, respectively. The biochemical methods were used to detect the activity of acetylcholine esterase (AChE) and butyryl cholinesterase (BuChE) to investigate the influence of CIG on cholinesterases. The results showed that CIG inhibited the activity of AChE of human blood cells and rat brain homogenate, with the 50% inhibition rate (IC50) of 1.6 g . L-1 and 3.3 g . L-1, respectively; and the inhibition of AChE of CIG is reversible. CIG also inhibited the activity of BuChE of human blood plasma, with the IC50 of 2.9 g . L-1. In conclusion, CIG can inhibit the activity of AChE and BuChE in vitro, which may be one of the mechanisms of CIG to treat AD.

Maternal dietary fat affects milk fatty acid profile and impacts on weight gain and thermogenic capacity of suckling rats.

PubMed

Priego, Teresa; Sánchez, Juana; García, Ana Paula; Palou, Andreu; Picó, Catalina

2013-05-01

We aimed to assess the effects of maternal supplementation with the main fat sources used in the human Western diet (olive oil, butter, margarine) on milk FA composition and on plasma FA profile of offspring, and to determine whether it may influence body-weight-gain (BWG) and adiposity of offspring during the suckling period. Wistar rats were supplemented with the different fat sources from day 14 of gestation and throughout lactation. Olive oil-supplemented dams showed the highest proportion of oleic-acid in milk, with no changes in plasma. Their offspring also showed the highest proportion of this FA in plasma, lower BWG during the suckling period, and higher levels of UCP1 in brown adipose tissue (BAT) at weaning. Margarine-supplemented dams showed the highest percentage of PUFA in milk, and a similar tendency was found in plasma of their offspring. Butter-supplemented dams displayed higher proportion of saturated FA (SFA) in milk compared to other fat-supplemented dams, but lower than controls. Control offspring also showed higher proportion of SFA in plasma and greater BWG during the suckling period than fat-supplemented groups. Significant correlations were found between the relative content of some milk FA and BWG of offspring, in particular, oleic-acid levels correlated negatively with BWG and positively with UCP1 levels. These results show that maternal dietary source of fat affects milk FA composition and circulating FA profile, as could be expected, but also BWG and thermogenic capacity of offspring during the suckling period. An effect of oleic-acid stimulating BAT thermogenic capacity of suckling pups is proposed.

Invention of the Annular Inductively Coupled Plasma as a Spectroscopic Source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greenfield, Stanley

2000-05-01

This paper shows how experiments with electrical discharges from the 18th century onward led to their use as sources in atomic spectroscopy and how the invention of the annular inductively coupled plasma (ICP) some 30 years ago arose from the need to solve a problem that necessitated the use of a high-temperature source. The search for such a source followed a fairly logical pattern involving dc plasma jets and an ICP such as had been used by T. B. Reed for crystal growing. The ellipsoidal plasma used by Reed was not entirely suitable as a spectroscopic source, since the analytical sample either mixed with the plasma gases or passed around the plasma, resulting in matrix effects and a diminution in the emission. It is shown how suitable modification of the plasma torch with attention to gas flows made it possible to produce an annular or tunnel plasma through which the sample aerosol could be passed, resulting in an annular ICP with greatly improved spectroscopic properties. The further refinements to the source and ancillary equipment are also discussed.

Production of Cloned Miniature Pigs Expressing High Levels of Human Apolipoprotein(a) in Plasma.

PubMed

Ozawa, Masayuki; Himaki, Takehiro; Ookutsu, Shoji; Mizobe, Yamato; Ogawa, Junki; Miyoshi, Kazuchika; Yabuki, Akira; Fan, Jianglin; Yoshida, Mitsutoshi

2015-01-01

High lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] levels are a major risk factor for the development of atherosclerosis. However, because apolipoprotein(a) [apo(a)], the unique component of Lp(a), is found only in primates and humans, the study of human Lp(a) has been hampered due to the lack of appropriate animal models. Using somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) techniques, we produced transgenic miniature pigs expressing human apo(a) in the plasma. First, we placed the hemagglutinin (HA)-tagged cDNA of human apo(a) under the control of the β-actin promoter and cytomegalovirus enhancer, and then introduced this construct into kidney epithelial cells. Immunostaining of cells with anti-HA antibody allowed identification of cells stably expressing apo(a); one of the positive clones was used to provide donor cells for SCNT, yielding blastocysts that expressed apo(a). Immunohistochemical analysis of tissue sections and RT-PCR analysis of total RNA from organs of cloned piglet revealed that apo(a) is expressed in various tissues/organs including heart, liver, kidney, and intestine. More importantly, a transgenic line exhibited a high level (>400 mg/dL) of Lp(a) in plasma, and the transgenic apo(a) gene was transmitted to the offspring. Thus, we generated a human apo(a)-transgenic miniature pig that can be used as a model system to study advanced atherosclerosis related to human disease. The anatomical and physiological similarities between the swine and human cardiovascular systems will make this pig model a valuable source of information on the role of apo(a) in the formation of atherosclerosis, as well as the mechanisms underlying vascular health and disease.

Quantitation of N,N-dimethyltryptamine and harmala alkaloids in human plasma after oral dosing with ayahuasca.

PubMed

Callaway, J C; Raymon, L P; Hearn, W L; McKenna, D J; Grob, C S; Brito, G S; Mash, D C

1996-10-01

Harmine, harmaline, tetrahydroharmine (THH), and N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) were quantitated in plasma from 15 healthy male volunteers after the ingestion of ayahuasca, a beverage that has been used for religious purposes in Brazil since pre-Columbian times. A growing awareness of the interest in this ancient shamanistic practice in modern urban cultures and the widespread popular dissemination of the inebriant effects and type and sources of the plant admixtures used to prepare the beverage have provided additional impetus for this study. The three harmala alkaloids were quantitated from protein-precipitated plasma by high-performance liquid chromatography using fluorescence detection. Recovery from blank human plasma was quantitative, and the limit of quantitation (LOQ) was below 2 ng/mL of plasma for each of the harmala alkaloids. Standard concentrations ranged from 10 to 250 ng/mL for harmine and THH and from 1.0 to 25.0 ng/mL for harmaline, respectively. Linearity was observed for harmine, harmaline, and THH within these respective ranges. The highest concentrations of harmala alkaloids in human plasma were found to be 222.3 ng/mL for harmine, 134.5 ng/mL for THH, and 9.4 ng/mL for harmaline. DMT was quantitated by gas chromatography using nitrogen-phosphorus detection after liquid-liquid extraction with diphenhydramine as an internal standard. DMT recovery was quantitative, and the limit of detection and LOQ were 0.5 and 5 ng/mL, respectively. Linearity for DMT was observed from 5 to 1000 ng/mL. The one-step extraction method for DMT and the protein precipitation method for the three harmala alkaloids afford rapid, sensitive, and quantitative analyses of these alkaloids with minimal analyte loss. The analytical methods also may be applicable to other matrices, including whole blood and urine samples and homogenized tissue specimens. These are the first reported observations of DMT and harmala alkaloids in plasma after ritual ingestion of ayahuasca.

Hexadecenoic fatty acid isomers: a chemical biology approach for human plasma biomarker development.

PubMed

Sansone, Anna; Melchiorre, Michele; Chatgilialoglu, Chryssostomos; Ferreri, Carla

2013-11-18

Hexadecenoic fatty acids are monounsaturated lipid components, which are interesting targets of plasma lipidomic studies and biomarker development. The main positional isomers, palmitoleic (9-cis-16:1) and sapienic acids (6-cis-16:1), have an endogenous origin from palmitic acid, the former being recognized as a component of adipose tissue with signaling activity, whereas the latter is mainly reported as a component of sebum. The trans 16:1 isomers are attributed so far to dietary sources of industrial and dairy fats, whereas the endogenous formation due to the free radical-mediated isomerization can represent an emerging, yet unexplored, pathway connected to cellular stress. Herein, we report a chemical biology approach for the development of hexadecenoic fatty acids as plasma biomarkers, with the first synthesis of 6-trans-16:1 and the efficient analytical setup with unambiguous assignment of 16:1 double bond position and geometry, which was applied to human commercial LDL and plasma cholesteryl esters. Sapienic acid was identified together with its geometrical trans isomer for the first time. The quantitation of hexadecenoic fatty acid isomers evidenced their different levels in the two lipid classes and LDL fractions, making us foresee interesting applications to the metabolic evaluation of fatty acid pathways. These findings open new perspectives for plasma lipidomics involving monounsaturated fatty acids, highlighting future developments for their evaluation in different health conditions including free radical stress.

Mini-conference on helicon plasma sources

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Scime, E. E.; Keesee, A. M.; Boswell, R. W.

2008-05-15

The first two sessions of this mini-conference focused attention on two areas of helicon source research: The conditions for optimal helicon source performance and the origins of energetic electrons and ions in helicon source plasmas. The final mini-conference session reviewed novel applications of helicon sources, such as mixed plasma source systems and toroidal helicon sources. The session format was designed to stimulate debate and discussion, with considerable time available for extended discussion.

Prion removal effect of a specific affinity ligand introduced into the manufacturing process of the pharmaceutical quality solvent/detergent (S/D)-treated plasma OctaplasLG.

PubMed

Neisser-Svae, A; Bailey, A; Gregori, L; Heger, A; Jordan, S; Behizad, M; Reichl, H; Römisch, J; Svae, T-E

2009-10-01

A new chromatographic step for the selective binding of abnormal prion protein (PrP(Sc)) was developed, and optimization for PrP(Sc) capture was achieved by binding to an affinity ligand attached to synthetic resin particles. This step was implemented into the manufacturing process of the solvent/detergent (S/D)-treated biopharmaceutical quality plasma Octaplas to further improve the safety margin in terms of risk for variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) transmission. Intermediates and Octaplas final container material, spiked with hamster brain-derived PrP(Sc)-containing fractions, were used for experiments to establish the feasibility of introducing this novel chromatography step. The binding capacity per millilitre of ligand gel was determined under the selected manufacturing conditions. In addition, the specificity of the ligand gel to bind PrP(Sc) from human sources was investigated. A validated Western blot test was used for the identification and quantification of PrP(Sc). A reduction factor of > or = 3.0 log(10) could be demonstrated by Western blotting, utilizing the relevant Octaplas matrix from manufacturing. In this particular cell-free plasma solution, the PrP(Sc) binding capacity of the selected gel was very high (> or = 6 log(10) ID(50)/ml, equivalent to roughly 10 log(10) ID(50)/column at manufacturing scale). The gel binds specifically PrP(Sc) from both animal (hamster and mouse) and human (sporadic and variant CJD) sources. This new single-use, disposable PrP(Sc)-harvesting gel ensures a very high capacity in terms of removing the pathogenic agent causing vCJD from the new generation OctaplasLG, in the event that prions can be found in plasma from donors incubating the disease and thereby contaminating the raw material plasma used for manufacturing.

Numerical Analysis of Plasma Transport in Tandem Volume Magnetic Multicusp Ion Sources

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-03-01

the results of the model are qualitatively correct. Boltzmann Equation, Ion Sources, Plasma Simulation, Electron Temperature, Plasma Density, Ion Temperature, Hydrogen Ions, Magnetic Filters, Hydrogen Plasma Chemistry .

On the possibility of the multiple inductively coupled plasma and helicon plasma sources for large-area processes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lee, Jin-Won; Lee, Yun-Seong, E-mail: leeeeys@kaist.ac.kr; Chang, Hong-Young

2014-08-15

In this study, we attempted to determine the possibility of multiple inductively coupled plasma (ICP) and helicon plasma sources for large-area processes. Experiments were performed with the one and two coils to measure plasma and electrical parameters, and a circuit simulation was performed to measure the current at each coil in the 2-coil experiment. Based on the result, we could determine the possibility of multiple ICP sources due to a direct change of impedance due to current and saturation of impedance due to the skin-depth effect. However, a helicon plasma source is difficult to adapt to the multiple sources duemore » to the consistent change of real impedance due to mode transition and the low uniformity of the B-field confinement. As a result, it is expected that ICP can be adapted to multiple sources for large-area processes.« less

Evaluation of the sensitivity of bacterial and yeast cells to cold atmospheric plasma jet treatments.

PubMed

Sharkey, Michael A; Chebbi, Ahmed; McDonnell, Kevin A; Staunton, Claire; Dowling, Denis P

2015-06-07

The focus of this research was first to determine the influence of the atmospheric plasma drive frequency on the generation of atomic oxygen species and its correlation with the reduction of bacterial load after treatment in vitro. The treatments were carried out using a helium-plasma jet source called PlasmaStream™. The susceptibility of multiple microbial cell lines was investigated in order to compare the response of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, as well as a yeast cell line to the atmospheric plasma treatment. It was observed for the source evaluated that at a frequency of 160 kHz, increased levels of oxygen-laden active species (i.e., OH, NO) were generated. At this frequency, the maximum level of bacterial inactivation in vitro was also achieved. Ex vivo studies (using freshly excised porcine skin as a human analog) were also carried out to verify the antibacterial effect of the plasma jet treatment at this optimal operational frequency and to investigate the effect of treatment duration on the reduction of bacterial load. The plasma jet treatment was found to yield a 4 log reduction in bacterial load after 6 min of treatment, with no observable adverse effects on the treatment surface. The gram-negative bacterial cell lines were found to be far more susceptible to the atmospheric plasma treatments than the gram-positive bacteria. Flow cytometric analysis of plasma treated bacterial cells (Escherichia coli) was conducted in order to attain a fundamental understanding of the mode of action of the treatment on bacteria at a cellular level. This study showed that after treatment with the plasma jet, E. coli cells progressed through the following steps of cell death; the inactivation of transport systems, followed by depolarization of the cytoplasmic membrane, and finally permeabilization of the cell wall.

Determination of acrosin activity of boar spermatozoa by the clinical method: optimization of the assay and changes during short-term storage of semen.

PubMed

Glogowski, J; Demianowicz, W; Piros, B; Ciereszko, A

1998-10-15

A clinical assay to evaluate total acrosin activity developed for human semen has been optimized for use in boar spermatozoa. The main modifications included a decrease of sperm number per assay from 1.0 to 10.0 x 10(6) to 12.5 to 75.0 x 10(3) spermatozoa, and the time of incubation from 180 to 60 min. Linearity of response for differing quantities of spermatozoa was maintained. Extensive washing of spermatozoa was necessary to eliminate seminal plasma, the source of acrosin inhibitors. Seminal plasma that was diluted 1000 times inhibited acrosin activity by about 50%. To abolish the inhibitory effect of seminal plasma it was necessary to use 25,000-fold dilution. Total acrosin activity of boar spermatozoa was about 100 times higher than that of human spermatozoa. Acrosin activity of boar spermatozoa in extended semen decreased during 7 d of storage. These results indicate that the clinical assay of acrosin activity can be used for boar spermatozoa to evaluate the quality of boar semen.

Parallel artificial liquid membrane extraction as an efficient tool for removal of phospholipids from human plasma.

PubMed

Ask, Kristine Skoglund; Bardakci, Turgay; Parmer, Marthe Petrine; Halvorsen, Trine Grønhaug; Øiestad, Elisabeth Leere; Pedersen-Bjergaard, Stig; Gjelstad, Astrid

2016-09-10

Generic Parallel Artificial Liquid Membrane Extraction (PALME) methods for non-polar basic and non-polar acidic drugs from human plasma were investigated with respect to phospholipid removal. In both cases, extractions in 96-well format were performed from plasma (125μL), through 4μL organic solvent used as supported liquid membranes (SLMs), and into 50μL aqueous acceptor solutions. The acceptor solutions were subsequently analysed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) using in-source fragmentation and monitoring the m/z 184→184 transition for investigation of phosphatidylcholines (PC), sphingomyelins (SM), and lysophosphatidylcholines (Lyso-PC). In both generic methods, no phospholipids were detected in the acceptor solutions. Thus, PALME appeared to be highly efficient for phospholipid removal. To further support this, qualitative (post-column infusion) and quantitative matrix effects were investigated with fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, and quetiapine as model analytes. No signs of matrix effects were observed. Finally, PALME was evaluated for the aforementioned drug substances, and data were in accordance with European Medicines Agency (EMA) guidelines. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Determination of Coreceptor Usage of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 from Patient Plasma Samples by Using a Recombinant Phenotypic Assay

PubMed Central

Trouplin, Virginie; Salvatori, Francesca; Cappello, Fanny; Obry, Veronique; Brelot, Anne; Heveker, Nikolaus; Alizon, Marc; Scarlatti, Gabriella; Clavel, François; Mammano, Fabrizio

2001-01-01

We developed a recombinant virus technique to determine the coreceptor usage of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) from plasma samples, the source expected to represent the most actively replicating virus population in infected subjects. This method is not subject to selective bias associated with virus isolation in culture, a step required for conventional tropism determination procedures. The addition of a simple subcloning step allowed semiquantitative evaluation of virus populations with a different coreceptor (CCR5 or CXCR4) usage specificity present in each plasma sample. This procedure detected mixtures of CCR5- and CXCR4-exclusive virus populations as well as dualtropic viral variants, in variable proportions. Sequence analysis of dualtropic clones indicated that changes in the V3 loop are necessary for the use of CXCR4 as a coreceptor, but the overall context of the V1-V3 region is important to preserve the capacity to use CCR5. This convenient technique can greatly assist the study of virus evolution and compartmentalization in infected individuals. PMID:11119595

Early effects comparison of X-rays delivered at high-dose-rate pulses by a plasma focus device and at low dose rate on human tumour cells.

PubMed

Virelli, A; Zironi, I; Pasi, F; Ceccolini, E; Nano, R; Facoetti, A; Gavoçi, E; Fiore, M R; Rocchi, F; Mostacci, D; Cucchi, G; Castellani, G; Sumini, M; Orecchia, R

2015-09-01

A comparative study has been performed on the effects of high-dose-rate (DR) X-ray beams produced by a plasma focus device (PFMA-3), to exploit its potential medical applications (e.g. radiotherapy), and low-DR X-ray beams produced by a conventional source (XRT). Experiments have been performed at 0.5 and 2 Gy doses on a human glioblastoma cell line (T98G). Cell proliferation rate and potassium outward currents (IK) have been investigated by time lapse imaging and patch clamp recordings. The results showed that PFMA-3 irradiation has a greater capability to reduce the proliferation rate activity with respect to XRT, while it does not affect IK of T98G cells at any of the dose levels tested. XRT irradiation significantly reduces the mean IK amplitude of T98G cells only at 0.5 Gy. This work confirms that the DR, and therefore the source of radiation, is crucial for the planning and optimisation of radiotherapy applications. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Simulations of negative hydrogen ion sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Demerdjiev, A.; Goutev, N.; Tonev, D.

2018-05-01

The development and the optimisation of negative hydrogen/deuterium ion sources goes hand in hand with modelling. In this paper a brief introduction on the physics and types of different sources, and on the Kinetic and Fluid theories for plasma description is made. Examples of some recent models are considered whereas the main emphasis is on the model behind the concept and design of a matrix source of negative hydrogen ions. At the Institute for Nuclear Research and Nuclear Energy of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences a new cyclotron center is under construction which opens new opportunities for research. One of them is the development of plasma sources for additional proton beam acceleration. We have applied the modelling technique implemented in the aforementioned model of the matrix source to a microwave plasma source exemplifying a plasma filled array of cavities made of a dielectric material with high permittivity. Preliminary results for the distribution of the plasma parameters and the φ component of the electric field in the plasma are obtained.

Comparison of Three Plasma Sources for Ambient Desorption/Ionization Mass Spectrometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McKay, Kirsty; Salter, Tara L.; Bowfield, Andrew; Walsh, James L.; Gilmore, Ian S.; Bradley, James W.

2014-09-01

Plasma-based desorption/ionization sources are an important ionization technique for ambient surface analysis mass spectrometry. In this paper, we compare and contrast three competing plasma based desorption/ionization sources: a radio-frequency (rf) plasma needle, a dielectric barrier plasma jet, and a low-temperature plasma probe. The ambient composition of the three sources and their effectiveness at analyzing a range of pharmaceuticals and polymers were assessed. Results show that the background mass spectrum of each source was dominated by air species, with the rf needle producing a richer ion spectrum consisting mainly of ionized water clusters. It was also seen that each source produced different ion fragments of the analytes under investigation: this is thought to be due to different substrate heating, different ion transport mechanisms, and different electric field orientations. The rf needle was found to fragment the analytes least and as a result it was able to detect larger polymer ions than the other sources.

Comparison of three plasma sources for ambient desorption/ionization mass spectrometry.

PubMed

McKay, Kirsty; Salter, Tara L; Bowfield, Andrew; Walsh, James L; Gilmore, Ian S; Bradley, James W

2014-09-01

Plasma-based desorption/ionization sources are an important ionization technique for ambient surface analysis mass spectrometry. In this paper, we compare and contrast three competing plasma based desorption/ionization sources: a radio-frequency (rf) plasma needle, a dielectric barrier plasma jet, and a low-temperature plasma probe. The ambient composition of the three sources and their effectiveness at analyzing a range of pharmaceuticals and polymers were assessed. Results show that the background mass spectrum of each source was dominated by air species, with the rf needle producing a richer ion spectrum consisting mainly of ionized water clusters. It was also seen that each source produced different ion fragments of the analytes under investigation: this is thought to be due to different substrate heating, different ion transport mechanisms, and different electric field orientations. The rf needle was found to fragment the analytes least and as a result it was able to detect larger polymer ions than the other sources.

Characterization of an electrothermal plasma source for fusion transient simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gebhart, T. E.; Baylor, L. R.; Rapp, J.; Winfrey, A. L.

2018-01-01

The realization of fusion energy requires materials that can withstand high heat and particle fluxes at the plasma material interface. In this work, an electrothermal (ET) plasma source has been designed as a transient heat flux source for a linear plasma material interaction device. An ET plasma source operates in the ablative arc regime driven by a DC capacitive discharge. The current channel width is defined by the 4 mm bore of a boron nitride liner. At large plasma currents, the arc impacts the liner wall, leading to high particle and heat fluxes to the liner material, which subsequently ablates and ionizes. This results in a high density plasma with a large unidirectional bulk flow out of the source exit. The pulse length for the ET source has been optimized using a pulse forming network to have durations of 1 and 2 ms. The peak currents and maximum source energies seen in this system are 1.9 kA and 1.2 kJ for the 2 ms pulse and 3.2 kA and 2.1 kJ for the 1 ms pulse, respectively. This work is a proof of the principal project to show that an ET source produces electron densities and heat fluxes comparable to those anticipated in transient events in large future magnetic confinement fusion devices. Heat flux, plasma temperature, and plasma density were determined for each shot using infrared imaging and optical spectroscopy techniques. This paper will discuss the assumptions, methods, and results of the experiments.

Plasma-surface interaction in negative hydrogen ion sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wada, Motoi

2018-05-01

A negative hydrogen ion source delivers more beam current when Cs is introduced to the discharge, but a continuous operation of the source reduces the beam current until more Cs is added to the source. This behavior can be explained by adsorption and ion induced desorption of Cs atoms on the plasma grid surface of the ion source. The interaction between the ion source plasma and the plasma grid surface of a negative hydrogen ion source is discussed in correlation to the Cs consumption of the ion source. The results show that operation with deuterium instead of hydrogen should require more Cs consumption and the presence of medium mass impurities as well as ions of the source wall materials in the arc discharge enlarges the Cs removal rate during an ion source discharge.

Development and validation of sensitive LC-MS/MS assays for quantification of HP-β-CD in human plasma and CSF

PubMed Central

Jiang, Hui; Sidhu, Rohini; Fujiwara, Hideji; De Meulder, Marc; de Vries, Ronald; Gong, Yong; Kao, Mark; Porter, Forbes D.; Yanjanin, Nicole M.; Carillo-Carasco, Nuria; Xu, Xin; Ottinger, Elizabeth; Woolery, Myra; Ory, Daniel S.; Jiang, Xuntian

2014-01-01

2-Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD), a widely used excipient for drug formulation, has emerged as an investigational new drug for the treatment of Niemann-Pick type C1 (NPC1) disease, a neurodegenerative cholesterol storage disorder. Development of a sensitive quantitative LC-MS/MS assay to monitor the pharmacokinetics (PKs) of HP-β-CD required for clinical trials has been challenging owing to the dispersity of the HP-β-CD. To support a phase 1 clinical trial for ICV delivery of HP-β-CD in NPC1 patients, novel methods for quantification of HP-β-CD in human plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) using LC-MS/MS were developed and validated: a 2D-LC-in-source fragmentation-MS/MS (2D-LC-IF-MS/MS) assay and a reversed phase ultra performance LC-MS/MS (RP-UPLC-MS/MS) assay. In both assays, protein precipitation and “dilute and shoot” procedures were used to process plasma and CSF, respectively. The assays were fully validated and in close agreement, and allowed determination of PK parameters for HP-β-CD. The LC-MS/MS methods are ∼100-fold more sensitive than the current HPLC assay, and were successfully employed to analyze HP-β-CD in human plasma and CSF samples to support the phase 1 clinical trial of HP-β-CD in NPC1 patients. PMID:24868096

Development and validation of sensitive LC-MS/MS assays for quantification of HP-β-CD in human plasma and CSF.

PubMed

Jiang, Hui; Sidhu, Rohini; Fujiwara, Hideji; De Meulder, Marc; de Vries, Ronald; Gong, Yong; Kao, Mark; Porter, Forbes D; Yanjanin, Nicole M; Carillo-Carasco, Nuria; Xu, Xin; Ottinger, Elizabeth; Woolery, Myra; Ory, Daniel S; Jiang, Xuntian

2014-07-01

2-Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD), a widely used excipient for drug formulation, has emerged as an investigational new drug for the treatment of Niemann-Pick type C1 (NPC1) disease, a neurodegenerative cholesterol storage disorder. Development of a sensitive quantitative LC-MS/MS assay to monitor the pharmacokinetics (PKs) of HP-β-CD required for clinical trials has been challenging owing to the dispersity of the HP-β-CD. To support a phase 1 clinical trial for ICV delivery of HP-β-CD in NPC1 patients, novel methods for quantification of HP-β-CD in human plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) using LC-MS/MS were developed and validated: a 2D-LC-in-source fragmentation-MS/MS (2D-LC-IF-MS/MS) assay and a reversed phase ultra performance LC-MS/MS (RP-UPLC-MS/MS) assay. In both assays, protein precipitation and "dilute and shoot" procedures were used to process plasma and CSF, respectively. The assays were fully validated and in close agreement, and allowed determination of PK parameters for HP-β-CD. The LC-MS/MS methods are ∼100-fold more sensitive than the current HPLC assay, and were successfully employed to analyze HP-β-CD in human plasma and CSF samples to support the phase 1 clinical trial of HP-β-CD in NPC1 patients. Copyright © 2014 by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Simultaneous determination of clofarabine and cytarabine in human plasma by LC-MS/MS.

PubMed

Büttner, Božena; Oertel, Reinhard; Schetelig, Johannes; Middeke, Jan Moritz; Bornhäuser, Martin; Seeling, Andreas; Knoth, Holger

2016-06-05

Combination of cytostatic agents is a basic principle in the treatment of cancer. For the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), purine analogs, like clofarabine and cytarabine act synergistically. Little is known, however, on their interaction in vivo. We developed a method for the simultaneous determination of clofarabine and cytarabine in human plasma. The substances were extracted from plasma samples by protein precipitation with acetonitrile. Cladribine was the internal standard (IS). The analytes were separated on Synergi HydroRP column (150mm×2.0mm, 4μm) and a triple-quadrupole mass spectrometry with an electrospray ionisation (ESI) source was applied for detection. The mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile, ammonium acetate 2mM and 0.5% formic acid in a gradient mode at a flow rate of 0.5ml/min. The injection volume was 10μl and the total run time was 6.0min. Retention times were 2.46min for clofarabine, 0.97min for cytarabine and 2.43min for the IS. Calibration ranges were 8-1000ng/ml for clofarabine and 20-2500ng/ml for cytarabine. The intra-day and inter-day precision was less than 15% and the relative standard deviation was all within ±15%. This new method allows a rapid and simple determination of both clofarabine and cytarabine in human plasma. It was applied to a pharmacokinetic investigation within a hematological trial in adult patients with AML. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hippophae rhamnoides L. Fruits Reduce the Oxidative Stress in Human Blood Platelets and Plasma

PubMed Central

Olas, Beata; Kontek, Bogdan; Malinowska, Paulina; Żuchowski, Jerzy; Stochmal, Anna

2016-01-01

Effects of the phenolic fraction from Hippophae rhamnoides fruits on the production of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS, a marker of lipid peroxidation) and the generation of superoxide anion (O2 −∙) in human blood platelets (resting platelets and platelets stimulated by a strong physiological agonist, thrombin) were studied in vitro. We also examined antioxidant properties of this fraction against human plasma lipid peroxidation and protein carbonylation induced by a strong biological oxidant, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) or H2O2/Fe (a donor of hydroxyl radicals). The tested fraction of H. rhamnoides (0.5– 50 µg/mL; the incubation time: 15 and 60 min) inhibited lipid peroxidation induced by H2O2 or H2O2/Fe. The H. rhamnoides phenolic fraction inhibited not only plasma lipid peroxidation, but also plasma protein carbonylation stimulated by H2O2 or H2O2/Fe. Moreover, the level of O2 −∙ in platelets significantly decreased. In comparative experiments, the H. rhamnoides fraction was a more effective antioxidant than aronia extract or grape seed extract (at the highest tested concentration, 50 µg/mL). The obtained results suggest that H. rhamnoides fruits may be a new, promising source of natural compounds with antioxidant and antiplatelet activity beneficial not only for healthy people, but also for those with oxidative stress-associated diseases. PMID:26933473

Investigation of large-area multicoil inductively coupled plasma sources using three-dimensional fluid model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brcka, Jozef

2016-07-01

A multi inductively coupled plasma (ICP) system can be used to maintain the plasma uniformity and increase the area processed by a high-density plasma. This article presents a source in two different configurations. The distributed planar multi ICP (DM-ICP) source comprises individual ICP sources that are not overlapped and produce plasma independently. Mutual coupling of the ICPs may affect the distribution of the produced plasma. The integrated multicoil ICP (IMC-ICP) source consists of four low-inductance ICP antennas that are superimposed in an azimuthal manner. The identical geometry of the ICP coils was assumed in this work. Both configurations have highly asymmetric components. A three-dimensional (3D) plasma model of the multicoil ICP configurations with asymmetric features is used to investigate the plasma characteristics in a large chamber and the operation of the sources in inert and reactive gases. The feasibility of the computational calculation, the speed, and the computational resources of the coupled multiphysics solver are investigated in the framework of a large realistic geometry and complex reaction processes. It was determined that additional variables can be used to control large-area plasmas. Both configurations can form a plasma, that azimuthally moves in a controlled manner, the so-called “sweeping mode” (SM) or “polyphase mode” (PPM), and thus they have the potential for large-area and high-density plasma applications. The operation in the azimuthal mode has the potential to adjust the plasma distribution, the reaction chemistry, and increase or modulate the production of the radicals. The intrinsic asymmetry of the individual coils and their combined operation were investigated within a source assembly primarily in argon and CO gases. Limited investigations were also performed on operation in CH4 gas. The plasma parameters and the resulting chemistry are affected by the geometrical relation between individual antennas. The aim of this work is to incorporate the technological, computational, dimensional scaling, and reaction chemistry aspects of the plasma under one computational framework. The 3D simulation is utilized to geometrically scale up the reactive plasma that is produced by multiple ICP sources.

A Variable Frequency, Mis-Match Tolerant, Inductive Plasma Source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rogers, Anthony; Kirchner, Don; Skiff, Fred

2014-10-01

Presented here is a survey and analysis of an inductively coupled, magnetically confined, singly ionized Argon plasma generated by a square-wave, variable frequency plasma source. The helicon-style antenna is driven directly by the class ``D'' amplifier without matching network for increased efficiency while maintaining independent control of frequency and applied power at the feed point. The survey is compared to similar data taken using a traditional exciter--power amplifier--matching network source. Specifically, the flexibility of this plasma source in terms of the independent control of electron plasma temperature and density is discussed in comparison to traditional source arrangements. Supported by US DOE Grant DE-FG02-99ER54543.

Physics-electrical hybrid model for real time impedance matching and remote plasma characterization in RF plasma sources.

PubMed

Sudhir, Dass; Bandyopadhyay, M; Chakraborty, A

2016-02-01

Plasma characterization and impedance matching are an integral part of any radio frequency (RF) based plasma source. In long pulse operation, particularly in high power operation where plasma load may vary due to different reasons (e.g. pressure and power), online tuning of impedance matching circuit and remote plasma density estimation are very useful. In some cases, due to remote interfaces, radio activation and, due to maintenance issues, power probes are not allowed to be incorporated in the ion source design for plasma characterization. Therefore, for characterization and impedance matching, more remote schemes are envisaged. Two such schemes by the same authors are suggested in these regards, which are based on air core transformer model of inductive coupled plasma (ICP) [M. Bandyopadhyay et al., Nucl. Fusion 55, 033017 (2015); D. Sudhir et al., Rev. Sci. Instrum. 85, 013510 (2014)]. However, the influence of the RF field interaction with the plasma to determine its impedance, a physics code HELIC [D. Arnush, Phys. Plasmas 7, 3042 (2000)] is coupled with the transformer model. This model can be useful for both types of RF sources, i.e., ICP and helicon sources.

Physics-electrical hybrid model for real time impedance matching and remote plasma characterization in RF plasma sources

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sudhir, Dass, E-mail: dass.sudhir@iter-india.org; Bandyopadhyay, M.; Chakraborty, A.

2016-02-15

Plasma characterization and impedance matching are an integral part of any radio frequency (RF) based plasma source. In long pulse operation, particularly in high power operation where plasma load may vary due to different reasons (e.g. pressure and power), online tuning of impedance matching circuit and remote plasma density estimation are very useful. In some cases, due to remote interfaces, radio activation and, due to maintenance issues, power probes are not allowed to be incorporated in the ion source design for plasma characterization. Therefore, for characterization and impedance matching, more remote schemes are envisaged. Two such schemes by the samemore » authors are suggested in these regards, which are based on air core transformer model of inductive coupled plasma (ICP) [M. Bandyopadhyay et al., Nucl. Fusion 55, 033017 (2015); D. Sudhir et al., Rev. Sci. Instrum. 85, 013510 (2014)]. However, the influence of the RF field interaction with the plasma to determine its impedance, a physics code HELIC [D. Arnush, Phys. Plasmas 7, 3042 (2000)] is coupled with the transformer model. This model can be useful for both types of RF sources, i.e., ICP and helicon sources.« less

Can we estimate plasma density in ICP driver through electrical parameters in RF circuit?

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bandyopadhyay, M., E-mail: mainak@iter-india.org; Sudhir, Dass, E-mail: dass.sudhir@iter-india.org; Chakraborty, A., E-mail: arunkc@iter-india.org

2015-04-08

To avoid regular maintenance, invasive plasma diagnostics with probes are not included in the inductively coupled plasma (ICP) based ITER Neutral Beam (NB) source design. Even non-invasive probes like optical emission spectroscopic diagnostics are also not included in the present ITER NB design due to overall system design and interface issues. As a result, negative ion beam current through the extraction system in the ITER NB negative ion source is the only measurement which indicates plasma condition inside the ion source. However, beam current not only depends on the plasma condition near the extraction region but also on the perveancemore » condition of the ion extractor system and negative ion stripping. Nevertheless, inductively coupled plasma production region (RF driver region) is placed at distance (∼ 30cm) from the extraction region. Due to that, some uncertainties are expected to be involved if one tries to link beam current with plasma properties inside the RF driver. Plasma characterization in source RF driver region is utmost necessary to maintain the optimum condition for source operation. In this paper, a method of plasma density estimation is described, based on density dependent plasma load calculation.« less

Alternative modeling methods for plasma-based Rf ion sources

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Veitzer, Seth A., E-mail: veitzer@txcorp.com; Kundrapu, Madhusudhan, E-mail: madhusnk@txcorp.com; Stoltz, Peter H., E-mail: phstoltz@txcorp.com

Rf-driven ion sources for accelerators and many industrial applications benefit from detailed numerical modeling and simulation of plasma characteristics. For instance, modeling of the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) internal antenna H{sup −} source has indicated that a large plasma velocity is induced near bends in the antenna where structural failures are often observed. This could lead to improved designs and ion source performance based on simulation and modeling. However, there are significant separations of time and spatial scales inherent to Rf-driven plasma ion sources, which makes it difficult to model ion sources with explicit, kinetic Particle-In-Cell (PIC) simulation codes. Inmore » particular, if both electron and ion motions are to be explicitly modeled, then the simulation time step must be very small, and total simulation times must be large enough to capture the evolution of the plasma ions, as well as extending over many Rf periods. Additional physics processes such as plasma chemistry and surface effects such as secondary electron emission increase the computational requirements in such a way that even fully parallel explicit PIC models cannot be used. One alternative method is to develop fluid-based codes coupled with electromagnetics in order to model ion sources. Time-domain fluid models can simulate plasma evolution, plasma chemistry, and surface physics models with reasonable computational resources by not explicitly resolving electron motions, which thereby leads to an increase in the time step. This is achieved by solving fluid motions coupled with electromagnetics using reduced-physics models, such as single-temperature magnetohydrodynamics (MHD), extended, gas dynamic, and Hall MHD, and two-fluid MHD models. We show recent results on modeling the internal antenna H{sup −} ion source for the SNS at Oak Ridge National Laboratory using the fluid plasma modeling code USim. We compare demonstrate plasma temperature equilibration in two-temperature MHD models for the SNS source and present simulation results demonstrating plasma evolution over many Rf periods for different plasma temperatures. We perform the calculations in parallel, on unstructured meshes, using finite-volume solvers in order to obtain results in reasonable time.« less

Alternative modeling methods for plasma-based Rf ion sources.

PubMed

Veitzer, Seth A; Kundrapu, Madhusudhan; Stoltz, Peter H; Beckwith, Kristian R C

2016-02-01

Rf-driven ion sources for accelerators and many industrial applications benefit from detailed numerical modeling and simulation of plasma characteristics. For instance, modeling of the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) internal antenna H(-) source has indicated that a large plasma velocity is induced near bends in the antenna where structural failures are often observed. This could lead to improved designs and ion source performance based on simulation and modeling. However, there are significant separations of time and spatial scales inherent to Rf-driven plasma ion sources, which makes it difficult to model ion sources with explicit, kinetic Particle-In-Cell (PIC) simulation codes. In particular, if both electron and ion motions are to be explicitly modeled, then the simulation time step must be very small, and total simulation times must be large enough to capture the evolution of the plasma ions, as well as extending over many Rf periods. Additional physics processes such as plasma chemistry and surface effects such as secondary electron emission increase the computational requirements in such a way that even fully parallel explicit PIC models cannot be used. One alternative method is to develop fluid-based codes coupled with electromagnetics in order to model ion sources. Time-domain fluid models can simulate plasma evolution, plasma chemistry, and surface physics models with reasonable computational resources by not explicitly resolving electron motions, which thereby leads to an increase in the time step. This is achieved by solving fluid motions coupled with electromagnetics using reduced-physics models, such as single-temperature magnetohydrodynamics (MHD), extended, gas dynamic, and Hall MHD, and two-fluid MHD models. We show recent results on modeling the internal antenna H(-) ion source for the SNS at Oak Ridge National Laboratory using the fluid plasma modeling code USim. We compare demonstrate plasma temperature equilibration in two-temperature MHD models for the SNS source and present simulation results demonstrating plasma evolution over many Rf periods for different plasma temperatures. We perform the calculations in parallel, on unstructured meshes, using finite-volume solvers in order to obtain results in reasonable time.

High precision quantification of human plasma proteins using the automated SISCAPA Immuno-MS workflow.

PubMed

Razavi, Morteza; Leigh Anderson, N; Pope, Matthew E; Yip, Richard; Pearson, Terry W

2016-09-25

Efficient robotic workflows for trypsin digestion of human plasma and subsequent antibody-mediated peptide enrichment (the SISCAPA method) were developed with the goal of improving assay precision and throughput for multiplexed protein biomarker quantification. First, an 'addition only' tryptic digestion protocol was simplified from classical methods, eliminating the need for sample cleanup, while improving reproducibility, scalability and cost. Second, methods were developed to allow multiplexed enrichment and quantification of peptide surrogates of protein biomarkers representing a very broad range of concentrations and widely different molecular masses in human plasma. The total workflow coefficients of variation (including the 3 sequential steps of digestion, SISCAPA peptide enrichment and mass spectrometric analysis) for 5 proteotypic peptides measured in 6 replicates of each of 6 different samples repeated over 6 days averaged 3.4% within-run and 4.3% across all runs. An experiment to identify sources of variation in the workflow demonstrated that MRM measurement and tryptic digestion steps each had average CVs of ∼2.7%. Because of the high purity of the peptide analytes enriched by antibody capture, the liquid chromatography step is minimized and in some cases eliminated altogether, enabling throughput levels consistent with requirements of large biomarker and clinical studies. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Simultaneous determination of febuxostat and its three active metabolites in human plasma by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and its application to a pharmacokinetic study in Chinese healthy volunteers.

PubMed

Wu, Yingli; Mao, Zhengsheng; Liu, Youping; Wang, Xin; Di, Xin

2015-10-10

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for simultaneous determination of febuxostat and its three active metabolites in human plasma was developed using a ZORBAX SB-C18 column (50 mm × 4.6 mm, 5 μm) and an optimized gradient mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile, water and formic acid. Plasma samples were spiked with the internal standard losartan and then pre-treated using one-step protein precipitation with methanol. Mass spectrometric detection was performed by selective reaction monitoring mode via electrospray ionization source operating in positive ionization mode. The method exhibited good linearity over the concentration range of 10-20,000 ng/mL for febuxostat, 1.0-270 ng/mL for 67M-1 and 67M-2, and 0.8-250 ng/mL for 67 M-4, respectively. The intra- and inter-day precisions were less than 14.7% and the accuracy ranged from -4.3% to 5.1%. The method was successfully applied to a clinical pharmacokinetic study of febuxostat in humans after oral administration of a single dose of febuxostat at 40, 80 and 120 mg. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

[Study of the effect of heat source separation distance on plasma physical properties in laser-pulsed GMAW hybrid welding based on spectral diagnosis technique].

PubMed

Liao, Wei; Hua, Xue-Ming; Zhang, Wang; Li, Fang

2014-05-01

In the present paper, the authors calculated the plasma's peak electron temperatures under different heat source separation distance in laser- pulse GMAW hybrid welding based on Boltzmann spectrometry. Plasma's peak electron densities under the corresponding conditions were also calculated by using the Stark width of the plasma spectrum. Combined with high-speed photography, the effect of heat source separation distance on electron temperature and electron density was studied. The results show that with the increase in heat source separation distance, the electron temperatures and electron densities of laser plasma did not changed significantly. However, the electron temperatures of are plasma decreased, and the electron densities of are plasma first increased and then decreased.

An Electrothermal Plasma Source Developed for Simulation of Transient Heat Loads in Future Large Fusion Devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gebhart, Trey; Baylor, Larry; Winfrey, Leigh

2016-10-01

The realization of fusion energy requires materials that can withstand high heat and particle fluxes at the plasma material interface. In this work, an electrothermal (ET) plasma source has been designed as a possible transient heat flux source for a linear plasma material interaction device. An ET plasma source operates in the ablative arc regime, which is driven by a DC capacitive discharge. The current travels through the 4mm bore of a boron nitride liner and subsequently ablates and ionizes the liner material. This results in a high density plasma with a large unidirectional bulk flow out of the source exit. The pulse length for the ET source has been optimized using a pulse forming network to have a duration of 1ms at full-width half maximum. The peak currents and maximum source energies seen in this system are 2kA and 5kJ. The goal of this work is to show that the ET source produces electron densities and heat fluxes that are comparable to transient events in future large magnetic confinement fusion devices. Heat flux, plasma temperature, and plasma density were determined for each test shot using infrared imaging and optical spectroscopy techniques. This work will compare the ET source output (heat flux, temperature, and density) with and without an applied magnetic field. Research sponsored by the Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, managed by UT-Battelle, LLC, for the U. S. Department of Energy.

21 CFR 640.90 - Plasma Protein Fraction (Human).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Plasma Protein Fraction (Human). 640.90 Section...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) § 640.90 Plasma Protein Fraction (Human). (a) Proper name and definition. The proper name of the product shall be...

21 CFR 640.90 - Plasma Protein Fraction (Human).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Plasma Protein Fraction (Human). 640.90 Section...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) § 640.90 Plasma Protein Fraction (Human). (a) Proper name and definition. The proper name of the product shall be...

21 CFR 640.90 - Plasma Protein Fraction (Human).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2011-04-01 2010-04-01 true Plasma Protein Fraction (Human). 640.90 Section 640...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) § 640.90 Plasma Protein Fraction (Human). (a) Proper name and definition. The proper name of the product shall be...

21 CFR 640.90 - Plasma Protein Fraction (Human).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Plasma Protein Fraction (Human). 640.90 Section...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) § 640.90 Plasma Protein Fraction (Human). (a) Proper name and definition. The proper name of the product shall be...

21 CFR 640.90 - Plasma Protein Fraction (Human).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 7 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Plasma Protein Fraction (Human). 640.90 Section...) BIOLOGICS ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) § 640.90 Plasma Protein Fraction (Human). (a) Proper name and definition. The proper name of the product shall be...

Public Data Set: Impedance of an Intense Plasma-Cathode Electron Source for Tokamak Plasma Startup

DOE Data Explorer

Hinson, Edward T. [University of Wisconsin-Madison] (ORCID:000000019713140X); Barr, Jayson L. [University of Wisconsin-Madison] (ORCID:0000000177685931); Bongard, Michael W. [University of Wisconsin-Madison] (ORCID:0000000231609746); Burke, Marcus G. [University of Wisconsin-Madison] (ORCID:0000000176193724); Fonck, Raymond J. [University of Wisconsin-Madison] (ORCID:0000000294386762); Perry, Justin M. [University of Wisconsin-Madison] (ORCID:0000000171228609)

2016-05-31

This data set contains openly-documented, machine readable digital research data corresponding to figures published in E.T. Hinson et al., 'Impedance of an Intense Plasma-Cathode Electron Source for Tokamak Plasma Startup,' Physics of Plasmas 23, 052515 (2016).

Beam current enhancement of microwave plasma ion source utilizing double-port rectangular cavity resonator

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lee, Yuna; Park, Yeong-Shin; Jo, Jong-Gab

2012-02-15

Microwave plasma ion source with rectangular cavity resonator has been examined to improve ion beam current by changing wave launcher type from single-port to double-port. The cavity resonators with double-port and single-port wave launchers are designed to get resonance effect at TE-103 mode and TE-102 mode, respectively. In order to confirm that the cavities are acting as resonator, the microwave power for breakdown is measured and compared with the E-field strength estimated from the HFSS (High Frequency Structure Simulator) simulation. Langmuir probe measurements show that double-port cavity enhances central density of plasma ion source by modifying non-uniform plasma density profilemore » of the single-port cavity. Correspondingly, beam current from the plasma ion source utilizing the double-port resonator is measured to be higher than that utilizing single-port resonator. Moreover, the enhancement in plasma density and ion beam current utilizing the double-port resonator is more pronounced as higher microwave power applied to the plasma ion source. Therefore, the rectangular cavity resonator utilizing the double-port is expected to enhance the performance of plasma ion source in terms of ion beam extraction.« less

Beam current enhancement of microwave plasma ion source utilizing double-port rectangular cavity resonator.

PubMed

Lee, Yuna; Park, Yeong-Shin; Jo, Jong-Gab; Yang, J J; Hwang, Y S

2012-02-01

Microwave plasma ion source with rectangular cavity resonator has been examined to improve ion beam current by changing wave launcher type from single-port to double-port. The cavity resonators with double-port and single-port wave launchers are designed to get resonance effect at TE-103 mode and TE-102 mode, respectively. In order to confirm that the cavities are acting as resonator, the microwave power for breakdown is measured and compared with the E-field strength estimated from the HFSS (High Frequency Structure Simulator) simulation. Langmuir probe measurements show that double-port cavity enhances central density of plasma ion source by modifying non-uniform plasma density profile of the single-port cavity. Correspondingly, beam current from the plasma ion source utilizing the double-port resonator is measured to be higher than that utilizing single-port resonator. Moreover, the enhancement in plasma density and ion beam current utilizing the double-port resonator is more pronounced as higher microwave power applied to the plasma ion source. Therefore, the rectangular cavity resonator utilizing the double-port is expected to enhance the performance of plasma ion source in terms of ion beam extraction.

Development of a Rapid LC-MS/MS Method for the Determination of Emerging Fusarium mycotoxins Enniatins and Beauvericin in Human Biological Fluids

PubMed Central

Serrano, Ana Belén; Capriotti, Anna Laura; Cavaliere, Chiara; Piovesana, Susy; Samperi, Roberto; Ventura, Salvatore; Laganà, Aldo

2015-01-01

A novel method for the simultaneous determination of enniatins A, A1, B and B1 and beauvericin, both in human urine and plasma samples, was developed and validated. The method consisted of a simple and easy pretreatment, specific for each matrix, followed by solid phase extraction (SPE) and detection by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry with an electrospray ion source. The optimized SPE method was performed on graphitized carbon black cartridges after suitable dilution of the extracts, which allowed high mycotoxin absolute recoveries (76%–103%) and the removal of the major interferences from the matrix. The method was extensively evaluated for plasma and urine samples separately, providing satisfactory results in terms of linearity (R2 of 0.991–0.999), process efficiency (>81%), trueness (recoveries between 85% and 120%), intra-day precision (relative standard deviation, RSD < 18%), inter-day precision (RSD < 21%) and method quantification limits (ranging between 20 ng·L−1 and 40 ng·L−1 in plasma and between 5 ng·L−1 and 20 ng·L−1 in urine). Finally, the highly sensitive validated method was applied to some urine and plasma samples from different donors. PMID:26371043

Capillary plasma jet: A low volume plasma source for life science applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Topala, I.; Nagatsu, M.

2015-02-01

In this letter, we present results from multispectroscopic analysis of protein films, after exposure to a peculiar plasma source, i.e., the capillary plasma jet. This plasma source is able to generate very small pulsed plasma volumes, in kilohertz range, with characteristic dimensions smaller than 1 mm. This leads to specific microscale generation and transport of all plasma species. Plasma diagnosis was realized using general electrical and optical methods. Depending on power level and exposure duration, this miniature plasma jet can induce controllable modifications to soft matter targets. Detailed discussions on protein film oxidation and chemical etching are supported by results from absorption, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and microscopy techniques. Further exploitation of principles presented here may consolidate research interests involving plasmas in biotechnologies and plasma medicine, especially in patterning technologies, modified biomolecule arrays, and local chemical functionalization.

Neutral source and particle balance in the HSX edge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stephey, Laurie; Kumar, Santhosh; Bader, Aaron; Akerson, Adrian; Schmitz, Oliver; Anderson, David; A, Simon; Talmadge, Joseph; Hegna, Chris

2015-11-01

The ability to control the neutral particle and impurity source in fusion devices is critical to obtaining high purity, high confinement plasmas. The neutral particle source defines the edge density gradients and plasma flows. To understand the relationship between the neutral particle source, plasma density gradients and plasma edge and core transport in HSX, a single reservoir particle balance is being used to provide a complete particle inventory. Detailed spectroscopic measurements of hydrogen and helium emission have yielded neutral and plasma profiles and ionization length estimations. The plasma puff source rate has been directly measured. To determine the recycling source rate, two specially designed limiters will be inserted to intercept 99% of the field lines, resulting in a well-defined LCFS and plasma interaction zone. Single limiter insertion resulted in a 50% reduction in global line emission, implying a reduction in wall recycling. Future camera and probe measurements will provide a recycling source rate. HSX neutral physics is also being investigated using EMC3-EIRENE. All results are discussed along with complementary plans for the Wendelstein 7-X startup phase. This work supported by US DOE Grant DE-FG02-93ER54222 and DE-SC0006103.

A Numerical Study of the Non-Ideal Behavior, Parameters, and Novel Applications of an Electrothermal Plasma Source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winfrey, A. Leigh

Electrothermal plasma sources have numerous applications including hypervelocity launchers, fusion reactor pellet injection, and space propulsion systems. The time evolution of important plasma parameters at the source exit is important in determining the suitability of the source for different applications. In this study a capillary discharge code has been modified to incorporate non-ideal behavior by using an exact analytical model for the Coulomb logarithm in the plasma electrical conductivity formula. Actual discharge currents from electrothermal plasma experiments were used and code results for both ideal and non-ideal plasma models were compared to experimental data, specifically the ablated mass from the capillary and the electrical conductivity as measured by the discharge current and the voltage. Electrothermal plasma sources operating in the ablation-controlled arc regime use discharge currents with pulse lengths between 100 micros to 1 ms. Faster or longer or extended flat-top pulses can also be generated to satisfy various applications of ET sources. Extension of the peak current for up to an additional 1000 micros was tested. Calculations for non-ideal and ideal plasma models show that extended flattop pulses produce more ablated mass, which scales linearly with increased pulse length while other parameters remain almost constant. A new configuration of the PIPE source has been proposed in order to investigate the formation of plasmas from mixed materials. The electrothermal segmented plasma source can be used for studies related to surface coatings, surface modification, ion implantation, materials synthesis, and the physics of complex mixed plasmas. This source is a capillary discharge where the ablation liner is made from segments of different materials instead of a single sleeve. This system should allow for the modeling and characterization of the growth plasma as it provides all materials needed for fabrication through the same method. An ablation-free capillary discharge computer code has been developed to model plasma flow and acceleration of pellets for fusion fueling in magnetic fusion reactors. Two case studies with and without ablation, including different source configurations have been studied here. Velocities necessary for fusion fueling have been achieved. New additions made to the code model incorporate radial heat and energy transfer and move ETFLOW towards being a 2-D model of the plasma flow. This semi 2-D approach gives a view of the behavior of the plasma inside the capillary as it is affected by important physical parameters such as radial thermal heat conduction and their effect on wall ablation.

Magnetic Dipole Inflation with Cascaded ARC and Applications to Mini-Magnetospheric Plasma Propulsion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Giersch, L.; Winglee, R.; Slough, J.; Ziemba, T.; Euripides, P.

2003-01-01

Mini-Magnetospheric Plasma Propulsion (M2P2) seeks to create a plasma-inflated magnetic bubble capable of intercepting significant thrust from the solar wind for the purposes of high speed, high efficiency spacecraft propulsion. Previous laboratory experiments into the M2P2 concept have primarily used helicon plasma sources to inflate the dipole magnetic field. The work presented here uses an alternative plasma source, the cascaded arc, in a geometry similar to that used in previous helicon experiments. Time resolved measurements of the equatorial plasma density have been conducted and the results are discussed. The equatorial plasma density transitions from an initially asymmetric configuration early in the shot to a quasisymmetric configuration during plasma production, and then returns to an asymmetric configuration when the source is shut off. The exact reasons for these changes in configuration are unknown, but convection of the loaded flux tube is suspected. The diffusion time was found to be an order of magnitude longer than the Bohm diffusion time for the period of time after the plasma source was shut off. The data collected indicate the plasma has an electron temperature of approximately 11 eV, an order of magnitude hotter than plasmas generated by cascaded arcs operating under different conditions. In addition, indirect evidence suggests that the plasma has a beta of order unity in the source region.

Counter-facing plasma guns for efficient extreme ultra-violet plasma light source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuroda, Yusuke; Yamamoto, Akiko; Kuwabara, Hajime; Nakajima, Mitsuo; Kawamura, Tohru; Horioka, Kazuhiko

2013-11-01

A plasma focus system composed of a pair of counter-facing coaxial guns was proposed as a long-pulse and/or repetitive high energy density plasma source. We applied Li as the source of plasma for improvement of the conversion efficiency, the spectral purity, and the repetition capability. For operation of the system with ideal counter-facing plasma focus mode, we changed the system from simple coaxial geometry to a multi-channel configuration. We applied a laser trigger to make synchronous multi-channel discharges with low jitter. The results indicated that the configuration is promising to make a high energy density plasma with high spectral efficiency.

Inhibition of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus by a plasma needle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miletić, Maja; Vuković, Dragana; Živanović, Irena; Dakić, Ivana; Soldatović, Ivan; Maletić, Dejan; Lazović, Saša; Malović, Gordana; Petrović, Zoran Lj.; Puač, Nevena

2014-03-01

In numerous recent papers plasma chemistry of non equilibrium plasma sources operating at atmospheric pressure has been linked to plasma medical effects including sterilization. In this paper we present a study of the effectiveness of an atmospheric pressure plasma source, known as plasma needle, in inhibition of the growth of biofilm produced by methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Even at the lowest powers the biofilms formed by inoculi of MRSA of 104 and 105 CFU have been strongly affected by plasma and growth in biofilms was inhibited. The eradication of the already formed biofilm was not achieved and it is required to go to more effective sources.

Abatement of Perfluorinated Compounds Using Cylindrical Microwave Plasma Source at Low Pressure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Seong Bong; Park, S.; Park, Y.; Youn, S.; Yoo, S. J.

2016-10-01

Microwave plasma source with a cylindrical cavity has been proposed to abate the perfluorinated compounds (PFCs). This plasma source was designed to generate microwave plasma with the cylindrical shape and to be easily installed in existing exhaust line. The microwave frequency is 2.45 GHz and the operating pressure range is 0.1 Torr to 0.3 Torr. The plasma characteristic of the cylindrical microwave plasma source was measured using the optical spectrometer, and tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS). The destruction and removal efficiency (DRE) of CF4 and CHF3 were measured by a quadrupole mass spectroscopy (QMS) with the various operation conditions. The effect of the addition of the oxygen gas were tested and also the correlation between the plasma parameters and the DRE are presented in this study. This work was supported by R&D Program of ``Plasma Advanced Technology for Agriculture and Food (Plasma Farming)'' through the National Fusion Research Institute of Korea (NFRI) funded by the Government funds.

Progress in the Development of a High Power Helicon Plasma Source for the Materials Plasma Exposure Experiment

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Goulding, Richard Howell; Caughman, John B.; Rapp, Juergen

Proto-MPEX is a linear plasma device being used to study a novel RF source concept for the planned Material Plasma Exposure eXperiment (MPEX), which will address plasma-materials interaction (PMI) for nuclear fusion reactors. Plasmas are produced using a large diameter helicon source operating at a frequency of 13.56 MHz at power levels up to 120 kW. In recent experiments the helicon source has produced deuterium plasmas with densities up to ~6 × 1019 m–3 measured at a location 2 m downstream from the antenna and 0.4 m from the target. Previous plasma production experiments on Proto-MPEX have generated lower densitymore » plasmas with hollow electron temperature profiles and target power deposition peaked far off axis. The latest experiments have produced flat Te profiles with a large portion of the power deposited on the target near the axis. This and other evidence points to the excitation of a helicon mode in this case.« less

Characterization of an electrothermal plasma source for fusion transient simulations

DOE PAGES

Gebhart, T. E.; Baylor, Larry R.; Rapp, Juergen; ...

2018-01-21

The realization of fusion energy requires materials that can withstand high heat and particle fluxes at the plasma material interface. Here in this work, an electrothermal (ET) plasma source has been designed as a transient heat flux source for a linear plasma material interaction device. An ET plasma source operates in the ablative arc regime driven by a DC capacitive discharge. The current channel width is defined by the 4 mm bore of a boron nitride liner. At large plasma currents, the arc impacts the liner wall, leading to high particle and heat fluxes to the liner material, which subsequentlymore » ablates and ionizes. This results in a high density plasma with a large unidirectional bulk flow out of the source exit. The pulse length for the ET source has been optimized using a pulse forming network to have durations of 1 and 2 ms. The peak currents and maximum source energies seen in this system are 1.9 kA and 1.2 kJ for the 2 ms pulse and 3.2 kA and 2.1 kJ for the 1 ms pulse, respectively. This work is a proof of the principal project to show that an ET source produces electron densities and heat fluxes comparable to those anticipated in transient events in large future magnetic confinement fusion devices. Heat flux, plasma temperature, and plasma density were determined for each shot using infrared imaging and optical spectroscopy techniques. This paper will discuss the assumptions, methods, and results of the experiments.« less

Characterization of an electrothermal plasma source for fusion transient simulations

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gebhart, T. E.; Baylor, Larry R.; Rapp, Juergen

The realization of fusion energy requires materials that can withstand high heat and particle fluxes at the plasma material interface. Here in this work, an electrothermal (ET) plasma source has been designed as a transient heat flux source for a linear plasma material interaction device. An ET plasma source operates in the ablative arc regime driven by a DC capacitive discharge. The current channel width is defined by the 4 mm bore of a boron nitride liner. At large plasma currents, the arc impacts the liner wall, leading to high particle and heat fluxes to the liner material, which subsequentlymore » ablates and ionizes. This results in a high density plasma with a large unidirectional bulk flow out of the source exit. The pulse length for the ET source has been optimized using a pulse forming network to have durations of 1 and 2 ms. The peak currents and maximum source energies seen in this system are 1.9 kA and 1.2 kJ for the 2 ms pulse and 3.2 kA and 2.1 kJ for the 1 ms pulse, respectively. This work is a proof of the principal project to show that an ET source produces electron densities and heat fluxes comparable to those anticipated in transient events in large future magnetic confinement fusion devices. Heat flux, plasma temperature, and plasma density were determined for each shot using infrared imaging and optical spectroscopy techniques. This paper will discuss the assumptions, methods, and results of the experiments.« less

Atomic processes and equation of state of high Z plasmas for EUV sources and their effects on the spatial and temporal evolution of the plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sasaki, Akira; Sunahara, Atushi; Furukawa, Hiroyuki; Nishihara, Katsunobu; Nishikawa, Takeshi; Koike, Fumihiro

2016-03-01

Laser-produced plasma (LPP) extreme ultraviolet (EUV) light sources have been intensively investigated due to potential application to next-generation semiconductor technology. Current studies focus on the atomic processes and hydrodynamics of plasmas to develop shorter wavelength sources at λ = 6.x nm as well as to improve the conversion efficiency (CE) of λ = 13.5 nm sources. This paper examines the atomic processes of mid-z elements, which are potential candidates for λ = 6.x nm source using n=3-3 transitions. Furthermore, a method to calculate the hydrodynamics of the plasmas in terms of the initial interaction between a relatively weak prepulse laser is presented.

Study on monatomic fraction improvement with alumina layer on metal electrode in hydrogen plasma ion source.

PubMed

Jung, Bong-Ki; Chung, Kyoung-Jae; Dang, Jeong-Jeung; Hwang, Y S

2012-02-01

A high monatomic beam fraction is an important factor in a hydrogen ion source to increase the application efficiency. The monatomic fraction of hydrogen plasmas with different plasma electrode materials is measured in a helicon plasma ion source, and aluminum shows the highest value compared to that with the other metals such as copper and molybdenum. Formation of an aluminum oxide layer on the aluminum electrode is determined by XPS analysis, and the alumina layer is verified as the high monatomic fraction. Both experiments and numerical simulations conclude that a low surface recombination coefficient of the alumina layer on the plasma electrode is one of the most important parameters for increasing the monatomic fraction in hydrogen plasma ion sources.

Status and operation of the Linac4 ion source prototypes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lettry, J.; Aguglia, D.; Andersson, P.; Bertolo, S.; Butterworth, A.; Coutron, Y.; Dallocchio, A.; Chaudet, E.; Gil-Flores, J.; Guida, R.; Hansen, J.; Hatayama, A.; Koszar, I.; Mahner, E.; Mastrostefano, C.; Mathot, S.; Mattei, S.; Midttun, Ø.; Moyret, P.; Nisbet, D.; Nishida, K.; O'Neil, M.; Ohta, M.; Paoluzzi, M.; Pasquino, C.; Pereira, H.; Rochez, J.; Sanchez Alvarez, J.; Sanchez Arias, J.; Scrivens, R.; Shibata, T.; Steyaert, D.; Thaus, N.; Yamamoto, T.

2014-02-01

CERN's Linac4 45 kV H- ion sources prototypes are installed at a dedicated ion source test stand and in the Linac4 tunnel. The operation of the pulsed hydrogen injection, RF sustained plasma, and pulsed high voltages are described. The first experimental results of two prototypes relying on 2 MHz RF-plasma heating are presented. The plasma is ignited via capacitive coupling, and sustained by inductive coupling. The light emitted from the plasma is collected by viewports pointing to the plasma chamber wall in the middle of the RF solenoid and to the plasma chamber axis. Preliminary measurements of optical emission spectroscopy and photometry of the plasma have been performed. The design of a cesiated ion source is presented. The volume source has produced a 45 keV H- beam of 16-22 mA which has successfully been used for the commissioning of the Low Energy Beam Transport (LEBT), Radio Frequency Quadrupole (RFQ) accelerator, and chopper of Linac4.

Automated control of linear constricted plasma source array

DOEpatents

Anders, Andre; Maschwitz, Peter A.

2000-01-01

An apparatus and method for controlling an array of constricted glow discharge chambers are disclosed. More particularly a linear array of constricted glow plasma sources whose polarity and geometry are set so that the contamination and energy of the ions discharged from the sources are minimized. The several sources can be mounted in parallel and in series to provide a sustained ultra low source of ions in a plasma with contamination below practical detection limits. The quality of film along deposition "tracks" opposite the plasma sources can be measured and compared to desired absolute or relative values by optical and/or electrical sensors. Plasma quality can then be adjusted by adjusting the power current values, gas feed pressure/flow, gas mixtures or a combination of some or all of these to improve the match between the measured values and the desired values.

77 FR 6566 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Revisions to...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-02-08

... Requirements for Blood and Blood Components, Including Source Plasma; Correction AGENCY: Food and Drug... Components, Including Source Plasma,'' which provided incorrect publication information regarding the... solicits comments on certain labeling requirements for blood and blood components, including Source Plasma...

Plasma Processing of Metallic and Semiconductor Thin Films in the Fisk Plasma Source

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lampkin, Gregory; Thomas, Edward, Jr.; Watson, Michael; Wallace, Kent; Chen, Henry; Burger, Arnold

1998-01-01

The use of plasmas to process materials has become widespread throughout the semiconductor industry. Plasmas are used to modify the morphology and chemistry of surfaces. We report on initial plasma processing experiments using the Fisk Plasma Source. Metallic and semiconductor thin films deposited on a silicon substrate have been exposed to argon plasmas. Results of microscopy and chemical analyses of processed materials are presented.

The results of the study of compact gas-puff and vacuum spark plasma sources of SXR with Glass-Capillary Converters (GCC)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shlyaptseva, Alla; Kantsyrev, Victor; Inozemtsev, Andrei; Petrukhin, Oleg

1994-06-01

The results are presented dealing with the working out and study of the SXR compact plasma source. The experimental set up included a compact new 'gas-puff' source with parameters being better than the traditional ones and a new type of SXR source - low-inductance vacuum spark (LIVS) with glass-capillary converters (GCC) of SXR. The compact plasma 'gas-puff' source had the high value of the z approx. (1-2) 10(exp -2) (conversion coefficient of initial energy supply into SXR); a small effective size of emission region and greater resource. The characteristics of LIVS with GCC were studied. GCC consisting of about several hundreds of glass capillaries allowed us to focus SXR, to change the cross section of SXR beams to plasma sources, and to change SXR spectrum. The possibility was shown of using of GCC in plasma diagnostics of powerful plasma devices: for X-ray microscopy and to study the influence of SXR on the solid state surface.

Plasma-Lyte 148: A clinical review

PubMed Central

Weinberg, Laurence; Collins, Neil; Van Mourik, Kiara; Tan, Chong; Bellomo, Rinaldo

2016-01-01

AIM To outline the physiochemical properties and specific clinical uses of Plasma-Lyte 148 as choice of solution for fluid intervention in critical illness, surgery and perioperative medicine. METHODS We performed an electronic literature search from Medline and PubMed (via Ovid), anesthesia and pharmacology textbooks, and online sources including studies that compared Plasma-Lyte 148 to other crystalloid solutions. The following keywords were used: “surgery”, “anaesthesia”, “anesthesia”, “anesthesiology”, “anaesthesiology”, “fluids”, “fluid therapy”, “crystalloid”, “saline”, “plasma-Lyte”, “plasmalyte”, “hartmann’s”, “ringers” “acetate”, “gluconate”, “malate”, “lactate”. All relevant articles were accessed in full. We summarized the data and reported the data in tables and text. RESULTS We retrieved 104 articles relevant to the choice of Plasma-Lyte 148 for fluid intervention in critical illness, surgery and perioperative medicine. We analyzed the data and reported the results in tables and text. CONCLUSION Plasma-Lyte 148 is an isotonic, buffered intravenous crystalloid solution with a physiochemical composition that closely reflects human plasma. Emerging data supports the use of buffered crystalloid solutions in preference to saline in improving physicochemical outcomes. Further large randomized controlled trials assessing the comparative effectiveness of Plasma-Lyte 148 and other crystalloid solutions in measuring clinically important outcomes such as morbidity and mortality are needed. PMID:27896148

Large area multiarc ion beam source {open_quote}MAIS{close_quote}

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Engelko, V.; Giese, H.; Schalk, S.

1996-12-31

A pulsed large area intense ion beam source is described, in which the ion emitting plasma is built up by an array of individual discharge units, homogeneously distributed over the surface of a common discharge electrode. A particularly advantageous feature of the source is that for plasma generation and subsequent acceleration of the ions only one common energy supply is necessary. This allows to simplify the source design and provides inherent synchronization of plasma production and ion extraction. The homogeneity of the plasma density was found to be superior to plasma sources using plasma expanders. Originally conceived for the productionmore » of proton beams, the source can easily be modified for the production of beams composed of carbon and metal ions or mixed ion species. Results of investigations of the source performance for the production of a proton beam are presented. The maximum beam current achieved to date is of the order of 100 A, with a particle kinetic energy of 15 - 30 keV and a pulse length in the range of 10 {mu}s.« less

[Determination of plasma protein binding rate of arctiin and arctigenin with ultrafiltration].

PubMed

Han, Xue-Ying; Wang, Wei; Tan, Ri-Qiu; Dou, De-Qiang

2013-02-01

To determine the plasma protein binding rate of arctiin and arctigenin. The ultrafiltration combined with HPLC was employed to determine the plasma protein binding rate of arctiin and arctigenin as well as rat plasma and healthy human plasma proteins. The plasma protein binding rate of arctiin with rat plasma at the concentrations of 64. 29, 32.14, 16.07 mg x L(-1) were (71.2 +/- 2.0)%, (73.4 +/- 0.61)%, (78.2 +/- 1.9)%, respectively; while the plasma protein binding rate of arctiin with healthy human plasma at the above concentrations were (64.8 +/- 3.1)%, (64.5 +/- 2.5)%, (77.5 +/- 1.7)%, respectively. The plasma protein binding rate of arctigenin with rat plasma at the concentrations of 77.42, 38.71, 19.36 mg x L(-1) were (96.7 +/- 0.41)%, (96.8 +/- 1.6)%, (97.3 +/- 0.46)%, respectively; while the plasma protein binding rate of arctigenin with normal human plasma at the above concentrations were (94.7 +/- 3.1)%, (96.8 +/- 1.6)%, (97.9 +/- 1.3)%, respectively. The binding rate of arctiin with rat plasma protein was moderate, which is slightly higher than the binding rate of arctiin with healthy human plasma protein. The plasma protein binding rates of arctigenin with both rat plasma and healthy human plasma are very high.

Ion source research and development at University of Jyväskylä: Studies of different plasma processes and towards the higher beam intensities.

PubMed

Koivisto, H; Kalvas, T; Tarvainen, O; Komppula, J; Laulainen, J; Kronholm, R; Ranttila, K; Tuunanen, J; Thuillier, T; Xie, D; Machicoane, G

2016-02-01

Several ion source related research and development projects are in progress at the Department of Physics, University of Jyväskylä (JYFL). The work can be divided into investigation of the ion source plasma and development of ion sources, ion beams, and diagnostics. The investigation covers the Electron Cyclotron Resonance Ion Source (ECRIS) plasma instabilities, vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) and visible light emission, photon induced electron emission, and the development of plasma diagnostics. The ion source development covers the work performed for radiofrequency-driven negative ion source, RADIS, beam line upgrade of the JYFL 14 GHz ECRIS, and the development of a new room-temperature-magnet 18 GHz ECRIS, HIISI.

Material impacts and heat flux characterization of an electrothermal plasma source with an applied magnetic field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gebhart, T. E.; Martinez-Rodriguez, R. A.; Baylor, L. R.; Rapp, J.; Winfrey, A. L.

2017-08-01

To produce a realistic tokamak-like plasma environment in linear plasma device, a transient source is needed to deliver heat and particle fluxes similar to those seen in an edge localized mode (ELM). ELMs in future large tokamaks will deliver heat fluxes of ˜1 GW/m2 to the divertor plasma facing components at a few Hz. An electrothermal plasma source can deliver heat fluxes of this magnitude. These sources operate in an ablative arc regime which is driven by a DC capacitive discharge. An electrothermal source was configured with two pulse lengths and tested under a solenoidal magnetic field to determine the resulting impact on liner ablation, plasma parameters, and delivered heat flux. The arc travels through and ablates a boron nitride liner and strikes a tungsten plate. The tungsten target plate is analyzed for surface damage using a scanning electron microscope.

Surface plasma source with saddle antenna radio frequency plasma generator.

PubMed

Dudnikov, V; Johnson, R P; Murray, S; Pennisi, T; Piller, C; Santana, M; Stockli, M; Welton, R

2012-02-01

A prototype RF H(-) surface plasma source (SPS) with saddle (SA) RF antenna is developed which will provide better power efficiency for high pulsed and average current, higher brightness with longer lifetime and higher reliability. Several versions of new plasma generators with small AlN discharge chambers and different antennas and magnetic field configurations were tested in the plasma source test stand. A prototype SA SPS was installed in the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) ion source test stand with a larger, normal-sized SNS AlN chamber that achieved unanalyzed peak currents of up to 67 mA with an apparent efficiency up to 1.6 mA∕kW. Control experiments with H(-) beam produced by SNS SPS with internal and external antennas were conducted. A new version of the RF triggering plasma gun has been designed. A saddle antenna SPS with water cooling is fabricated for high duty factor testing.

Preparation Of Sources For Plasma Vapor Deposition

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Waters, William J.; Sliney, Hal; Kowalski, D.

1993-01-01

Multicomponent metal targets serving as sources of vapor for plasma vapor deposition made in modified pressureless-sintering process. By use of targets made in modified process, one coats components with materials previously plasma-sprayed or sintered but not plasma-vapor-deposited.

Wax Ester Rich Oil From The Marine Crustacean, Calanus finmarchicus, is a Bioavailable Source of EPA and DHA for Human Consumption.

PubMed

Cook, Chad M; Larsen, Terje S; Derrig, Linda D; Kelly, Kathleen M; Tande, Kurt S

2016-10-01

Oil from the marine copepod, Calanus finmarchicus, which contains >86 % of fatty acids present as wax esters, is a novel source of n-3 fatty acids for human consumption. In a randomized, two-period crossover study, 18 healthy adults consumed 8 capsules providing 4 g of Calanus(®) Oil supplying a total of 260 mg EPA and 156 mg DHA primarily as wax esters, or 1 capsule of Lovaza(®) providing 465 mg EPA and 375 mg DHA as ethyl esters, each with an EPA- and DHA-free breakfast. Plasma EPA and DHA were measured over a 72 h period (t = 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 24, 48, and 72 h). The positive incremental area under the curve over the 72 h test period (iAUC0-72 h) for both EPA and DHA was significantly different from zero (p < 0.0001) in both test conditions, with similar findings for the iAUC0-24 h and iAUC0-48 h, indicating the fatty acids were absorbed. There was no difference in the plasma iAUC0-72 h for EPA + DHA, or DHA individually, in response to Calanus Oil vs the ethyl ester condition; however, the iAUC0-48 h and iAUC0-72 h for plasma EPA in response to Calanus Oil were both significantly increased relative to the ethyl ester condition (iAUC0-48 h: 381 ± 31 vs 259 ± 39 μg*h/mL, p = 0.026; iAUC0-72 h: 514 ± 47 vs 313 ± 49 μg*h/mL, p = 0.009). These data demonstrate a novel wax ester rich marine oil is a suitable alternative source of EPA and DHA for human consumption.

Plasma drug concentrations and physiological measures in 'dance party' participants.

PubMed

Irvine, Rodney J; Keane, Michael; Felgate, Peter; McCann, Una D; Callaghan, Paul D; White, Jason M

2006-02-01

The increasing use of (+/-) 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in the setting of large dance parties ('raves') and clubs has been the source of some concern, because of potential acute adverse events, and because animal studies suggest that MDMA has the potential to damage brain serotonin (5-HT) neurons. However, it is not yet known whether MDMA, as used in the setting of dance parties, leads to plasma levels of MDMA that are associated with toxicity to 5-HT neurons in animals. The present study sought to address this question. Plasma MDMA concentrations, vital signs, and a variety of blood and urine measures were obtained prior to, and hours after, individuals attended a dance party. After the dance party, subjects were without clinical complaints, had measurable amounts of residual MDMA in plasma, and nearly half of the subjects also tested positive for methamphetamine, another amphetamine analog that has been shown to have 5-HT neurotoxic potential in animals. Plasma concentrations of MDMA did not correlate with self-reported use of 'ecstasy' and, in some subjects, overlapped with those that have been associated with 5-HT neurotoxicity in non-human primates. Additional subjects were likely to have had similar concentrations while at the dance party, when one considers the reported time of drug ingestion and the plasma half-life of MDMA in humans. Hematological and biochemical analyses were generally unremarkable. Moderate increases in blood pressure, heart rate and body temperature were observed in the subjects with the highest MDMA plasma concentrations. These findings are consistent with epidemiological findings that most people who use MDMA at dance parties do not develop serious clinical complications, and suggest that some of these individuals may be at risk for developing MDMA-induced toxicity to brain serotonin neurons.

Sources of error in determinations of carnitine and acylcarnitine in plasma.

PubMed

Fishlock, R C; Bieber, L L; Snoswell, A M

1984-02-01

Radioactive and nonradioactive L-carnitine and acyl-L-carnitine were used to evaluate the washing procedures used during the determination of free, total, short-chain, and long-chain acylcarnitine in human and sheep plasma. The volume of fluid trapped by the protein precipitated by perchloric acid is approximately 24% of the total fluid volume and thus contains 24% of free carnitine and short-chain acylcarnitine. Washing twice with distilled water removes about 25% of the long-chain acylcarnitine along with the trapped free carnitine and short-chain acylcarnitines. Washing the pellet twice with a 60 g/L solution of perchloric acid completely removes the trapped free carnitine and short-chain acylcarnitine but does not remove the bound long-chain acylcarnitines. Thus washing with perchloric acid is essential for accurate measurement of long-chain acylcarnitines in plasma samples.

Low pass filter for plasma discharge

DOEpatents

Miller, Paul A.

1994-01-01

An isolator is disposed between a plasma reactor and its electrical energy source in order to isolate the reactor from the electrical energy source. The isolator operates as a filter to attenuate the transmission of harmonics of a fundamental frequency of the electrical energy source generated by the reactor from interacting with the energy source. By preventing harmonic interaction with the energy source, plasma conditions can be readily reproduced independent of the electrical characteristics of the electrical energy source and/or its associated coupling network.

Perspective: The physics, diagnostics, and applications of atmospheric pressure low temperature plasma sources used in plasma medicine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laroussi, M.; Lu, X.; Keidar, M.

2017-07-01

Low temperature plasmas have been used in various plasma processing applications for several decades. But it is only in the last thirty years or so that sources generating such plasmas at atmospheric pressure in reliable and stable ways have become more prevalent. First, in the late 1980s, the dielectric barrier discharge was used to generate relatively large volume diffuse plasmas at atmospheric pressure. Then, in the early 2000s, plasma jets that can launch cold plasma plumes in ambient air were developed. Extensive experimental and modeling work was carried out on both methods and much of the physics governing such sources was elucidated. Starting in the mid-1990s, low temperature plasma discharges have been used as sources of chemically reactive species that can be transported to interact with biological media, cells, and tissues and induce impactful biological effects. However, many of the biochemical pathways whereby plasma affects cells remain not well understood. This situation is changing rather quickly because the field, known today as "plasma medicine," has experienced exponential growth in the last few years thanks to a global research community that engaged in fundamental and applied research involving the use of cold plasma for the inactivation of bacteria, dental applications, wound healing, and the destruction of cancer cells/tumors. In this perspective, the authors first review the physics as well as the diagnostics of the principal plasma sources used in plasma medicine. Then, brief descriptions of their biomedical applications are presented. To conclude, the authors' personal assessment of the present status and future outlook of the field is given.

Recent progress in plasma modelling at INFN-LNS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neri, L.; Castro, G.; Torrisi, G.; Galatà, A.; Mascali, D.; Celona, L.; Gammino, S.

2016-02-01

At Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare - Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (INFN-LNS), the development of intense ion and proton sources has been supported by a great deal of work on the modelling of microwave generated plasmas for many years. First, a stationary version of the particle-in-cell code was developed for plasma modelling starting from an iterative strategy adopted for the space charge dominated beam transport simulations. Electromagnetic properties of the plasma and full-waves simulations are now affordable for non-homogenous and non-isotropic magnetized plasma via "cold" approximation. The effects of Coulomb collisions on plasma particles dynamics was implemented with the Langevin formalism, instead of simply applying the Spitzer 90° collisions through a Monte Carlo technique. A wide database of different cross sections related to reactions occurring in a hydrogen plasma was implemented. The next step consists of merging such a variety of approaches for retrieving an "as-a-whole" picture of plasma dynamics in ion sources. The preliminary results will be summarized in the paper for a microwave discharge ion source designed for intense and high quality proton beams production, proton source for European Spallation Source project. Even if the realization of a predictive software including the complete processes involved in plasma formation is still rather far, a better comprehension of the source behavior is possible and so the simulations may support the optimization phase.

Recent progress in plasma modelling at INFN-LNS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Neri, L., E-mail: neri@lns.infn.it; Castro, G.; Mascali, D.

2016-02-15

At Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare - Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (INFN-LNS), the development of intense ion and proton sources has been supported by a great deal of work on the modelling of microwave generated plasmas for many years. First, a stationary version of the particle-in-cell code was developed for plasma modelling starting from an iterative strategy adopted for the space charge dominated beam transport simulations. Electromagnetic properties of the plasma and full-waves simulations are now affordable for non-homogenous and non-isotropic magnetized plasma via “cold” approximation. The effects of Coulomb collisions on plasma particles dynamics was implemented with the Langevinmore » formalism, instead of simply applying the Spitzer 90° collisions through a Monte Carlo technique. A wide database of different cross sections related to reactions occurring in a hydrogen plasma was implemented. The next step consists of merging such a variety of approaches for retrieving an “as-a-whole” picture of plasma dynamics in ion sources. The preliminary results will be summarized in the paper for a microwave discharge ion source designed for intense and high quality proton beams production, proton source for European Spallation Source project. Even if the realization of a predictive software including the complete processes involved in plasma formation is still rather far, a better comprehension of the source behavior is possible and so the simulations may support the optimization phase.« less

Tomographic diagnostics of nonthermal plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Denisova, Natalia

2009-10-01

In the previous work [1], we discussed a ``technology'' of tomographic method and relations between the tomographic diagnostics in thermal (equilibrium) and nonthermal (nonequilibrium) plasma sources. The conclusion has been made that tomographic reconstruction in thermal plasma sources is the standard procedure at present, which can provide much useful information on the plasma structure and its evolution in time, while the tomographic reconstruction of nonthermal plasma has a great potential at making a contribution to understanding the fundamental problem of substance behavior in strongly nonequilibrium conditions. Using medical terminology, one could say, that tomographic diagnostics of the equilibrium plasma sources studies their ``anatomic'' structure, while reconstruction of the nonequilibrium plasma is similar to the ``physiological'' examination: it is directed to study the physical mechanisms and processes. The present work is focused on nonthermal plasma research. The tomographic diagnostics is directed to study spatial structures formed in the gas discharge plasmas under the influence of electrical and gravitational fields. The ways of plasma ``self-organization'' in changing and extreme conditions are analyzed. The analysis has been made using some examples from our practical tomographic diagnostics of nonthermal plasma sources, such as low-pressure capacitive and inductive discharges. [0pt] [1] Denisova N. Plasma diagnostics using computed tomography method // IEEE Trans. Plasma Sci. 2009 37 4 502.

A Compact Source of Flash-Corona Discharge for Biomedical Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moshkunov, S. I.; Khomich, V. Yu.; Shershunova, E. A.

2018-01-01

A compact source of low-temperature plasma for biological and medical applications is proposed, which operates at kilohertz frequencies in the regime of flash-corona discharge with an energy of 0.1 mJ/pulse. The plasma source was tested in application to plasma pretreatment of green salad seeds. Plasma-treated seeds exhibited increased (by about 25%) germination speed as compared to that in the untreated control.

21 CFR 600.15 - Temperatures during shipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... Virus Vaccine Live Do. Measles Virus Vaccine Live Do. Mumps Virus Vaccine Live Do. Fresh Frozen Plasma −18 °C or colder. Liquid Plasma 1 to 10 °C. Plasma −18 °C or colder. Platelet Rich Plasma Between 1... Vaccine (Liquid Product) 0 °C or colder. Source Plasma −5 °C or colder. Source Plasma Liquid 10 °C or...

21 CFR 600.15 - Temperatures during shipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... Virus Vaccine Live Do. Measles Virus Vaccine Live Do. Mumps Virus Vaccine Live Do. Fresh Frozen Plasma −18 °C or colder. Liquid Plasma 1 to 10 °C. Plasma −18 °C or colder. Platelet Rich Plasma Between 1... Vaccine (Liquid Product) 0 °C or colder. Source Plasma −5 °C or colder. Source Plasma Liquid 10 °C or...

21 CFR 600.15 - Temperatures during shipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... Virus Vaccine Live Do. Measles Virus Vaccine Live Do. Mumps Virus Vaccine Live Do. Fresh Frozen Plasma −18 °C or colder. Liquid Plasma 1 to 10 °C. Plasma −18 °C or colder. Platelet Rich Plasma Between 1... Vaccine (Liquid Product) 0 °C or colder. Source Plasma −5 °C or colder. Source Plasma Liquid 10 °C or...

21 CFR 600.15 - Temperatures during shipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... Virus Vaccine Live Do. Measles Virus Vaccine Live Do. Mumps Virus Vaccine Live Do. Fresh Frozen Plasma −18 °C or colder. Liquid Plasma 1 to 10 °C. Plasma −18 °C or colder. Platelet Rich Plasma Between 1... Vaccine (Liquid Product) 0 °C or colder. Source Plasma −5 °C or colder. Source Plasma Liquid 10 °C or...

21 CFR 600.15 - Temperatures during shipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... Virus Vaccine Live Do. Measles Virus Vaccine Live Do. Mumps Virus Vaccine Live Do. Fresh Frozen Plasma −18 °C or colder. Liquid Plasma 1 to 10 °C. Plasma −18 °C or colder. Platelet Rich Plasma Between 1... Vaccine (Liquid Product) 0 °C or colder. Source Plasma −5 °C or colder. Source Plasma Liquid 10 °C or...

Simultaneous determination of TPN729 and its five metabolites in human plasma and urine by liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry.

PubMed

Liu, Yang; Shao, Shuguang; Song, Hanlin; Yao, Xueting; Liu, Jie; Liu, Hongzhong; Song, Ling; Jiang, Ji; Liu, Dongyang; Hu, Pei

2018-03-20

A specific and sensitive method was firstly developed using high performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) to simultaneously quantify TPN729 and its metabolites (TPN729-D1, TPN729-D2, TPN729M15-3 and TPN729M3) in human plasma and (TPN729-D1, TPN729-D2, TPN729M15-3 and TPN729M14) in human urine. Protein precipitation and direct dilution were used to extract TPN729 and its metabolites from plasma and urine, respectively. Ionization of TPN729, TPN729-D1, TPN729-D2, TPN729M15-3, TPN729M3, TPN729M14 and sildenafil (internal standard, IS) was performed using an electrospray ionization (ESI) source in positive mode and detection was carried out with multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode. This assay method for TPN729 and its five metabolites has been fully validated in terms of sensitivity, linearity, lower limit of quantification (LLOQ), precision, accuracy, stability, matrix effect and recovery. The LLOQ of TPN729/TPN729-D1/TPN729-D2/TPN729M15-3/TPN729M3 in human plasma and TPN729/TPN729-D1/TPN729-D2/TPN729M15-3/TPN729M14 in human urine were 0.200/0.500/2.00/0.500/1.00 ng/mL and 4.00/2.50/10.0/2.50/1.00 ng/mL, respectively. Inter- and intra-batch precision of TPN729 and its metabolites were less than 15% and the accuracy was within ±15% for both plasma and urine. The extraction recoveries of all analytes at three concentration levels were consistent. In conclusion, the validation results showed that this method was robust, specific, and sensitive and it can successfully fulfill the requirement of clinical pharmacokinetic study of TPN729 in Chinese healthy subjects. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Comprehensive blood plasma lipidomics by liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

PubMed

Sandra, Koen; Pereira, Alberto Dos Santos; Vanhoenacker, Gerd; David, Frank; Sandra, Pat

2010-06-18

A lipidomics strategy, combining high resolution reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) with high resolution quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (QqTOF), is described. The method has carefully been assessed in both a qualitative and a quantitative fashion utilizing human blood plasma. The inherent low technical variability associated with the lipidomics method allows to measure 65% of the features with an intensity RSD value below 10%. Blood plasma lipid spike-in experiments demonstrate that relative concentration differences smaller than 25% can readily be revealed by means of a t-test. Utilizing an advanced identification strategy, it is shown that the detected features mainly originate from (lyso-)phospholipids, sphingolipids, mono-, di- and triacylglycerols and cholesterol esters. The high resolution offered by the up-front RPLC step further allows to discriminate various isomeric species associated with the different lipid classes. The added value of utilizing a Jetstream electrospray ionization (ESI) source over a regular ESI source in lipidomics is for the first time demonstrated. In addition, the application of ultra high performance LC (UHPLC) up to 1200bar to extend the peak capacity or increase productivity is discussed. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Ion source with external RF antenna

DOEpatents

Leung, Ka-Ngo; Ji, Qing; Wilde, Stephen

2005-12-13

A radio frequency (RF) driven plasma ion source has an external RF antenna, i.e. the RF antenna is positioned outside the plasma generating chamber rather than inside. The RF antenna is typically formed of a small diameter metal tube coated with an insulator. An external RF antenna assembly is used to mount the external RF antenna to the ion source. The RF antenna tubing is wound around the external RF antenna assembly to form a coil. The external RF antenna assembly is formed of a material, e.g. quartz, which is essentially transparent to the RF waves. The external RF antenna assembly is attached to and forms a part of the plasma source chamber so that the RF waves emitted by the RF antenna enter into the inside of the plasma chamber and ionize a gas contained therein. The plasma ion source is typically a multi-cusp ion source.

Helicon plasma generator-assisted surface conversion ion source for the production of H- ion beams at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Centera)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tarvainen, O.; Rouleau, G.; Keller, R.; Geros, E.; Stelzer, J.; Ferris, J.

2008-02-01

The converter-type negative ion source currently employed at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) is based on cesium enhanced surface production of H- ion beams in a filament-driven discharge. In this kind of an ion source the extracted H- beam current is limited by the achievable plasma density which depends primarily on the electron emission current from the filaments. The emission current can be increased by increasing the filament temperature but, unfortunately, this leads not only to shorter filament lifetime but also to an increase in metal evaporation from the filament, which deposits on the H- converter surface and degrades its performance. Therefore, we have started an ion source development project focused on replacing these thermionic cathodes (filaments) of the converter source by a helicon plasma generator capable of producing high-density hydrogen plasmas with low electron energy. In our studies which have so far shown that the plasma density of the surface conversion source can be increased significantly by exciting a helicon wave in the plasma, and we expect to improve the performance of the surface converter H- ion source in terms of beam brightness and time between services. The design of this new source and preliminary results are presented, along with a discussion of physical processes relevant for H- ion beam production with this novel design. Ultimately, we perceive this approach as an interim step towards our long-term goal, combining a helicon plasma generator with an SNS-type main discharge chamber, which will allow us to individually optimize the plasma properties of the plasma cathode (helicon) and H- production (main discharge) in order to further improve the brightness of extracted H- ion beams.

Helicon plasma generator-assisted surface conversion ion source for the production of H(-) ion beams at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center.

PubMed

Tarvainen, O; Rouleau, G; Keller, R; Geros, E; Stelzer, J; Ferris, J

2008-02-01

The converter-type negative ion source currently employed at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) is based on cesium enhanced surface production of H(-) ion beams in a filament-driven discharge. In this kind of an ion source the extracted H(-) beam current is limited by the achievable plasma density which depends primarily on the electron emission current from the filaments. The emission current can be increased by increasing the filament temperature but, unfortunately, this leads not only to shorter filament lifetime but also to an increase in metal evaporation from the filament, which deposits on the H(-) converter surface and degrades its performance. Therefore, we have started an ion source development project focused on replacing these thermionic cathodes (filaments) of the converter source by a helicon plasma generator capable of producing high-density hydrogen plasmas with low electron energy. In our studies which have so far shown that the plasma density of the surface conversion source can be increased significantly by exciting a helicon wave in the plasma, and we expect to improve the performance of the surface converter H(-) ion source in terms of beam brightness and time between services. The design of this new source and preliminary results are presented, along with a discussion of physical processes relevant for H(-) ion beam production with this novel design. Ultimately, we perceive this approach as an interim step towards our long-term goal, combining a helicon plasma generator with an SNS-type main discharge chamber, which will allow us to individually optimize the plasma properties of the plasma cathode (helicon) and H(-) production (main discharge) in order to further improve the brightness of extracted H(-) ion beams.

Micro-column plasma emission liquid chromatograph

DOEpatents

Gay, Don D.

1984-01-01

In a direct current plasma emission spectrometer for use in combination with a micro-column liquid chromatograph, an improved plasma source unit. The plasma source unit includes a quartz capillary tube having an inlet means, outlet off gas means and a pair of spaced electrodes defining a plasma region in the tube. The inlet means is connected to and adapted to receive eluant of the liquid chromatograph along with a stream of plasma-forming gas. There is an opening through the wall of the capillary tube penetrating into the plasma region. A soft glass capillary light pipe is disposed at the opening, is connected to the spectrometer, and is adapted to transmit light passing from the plasma region to the spectrometer. There is also a source of electromotive force connected to the electrodes sufficient to initiate and sustain a plasma in the plasma region of the tube.

Micro-column plasma emission liquid chromatograph. [Patent application

DOEpatents

Gay, D.D.

1982-08-12

In a direct current plasma emission spectrometer for use in combination with a microcolumn liquid chromatograph, an improved plasma source unit is claimed. The plasma source unit includes a quartz capillary tube having an inlet means, outlet off gas means and a pair of spaced electrodes defining a plasma region in the tube. The inlet means is connected to and adapted to receive eluant of the liquid chromatograph along with a stream of plasma-forming gas. There is an opening through the wall of the capillary tube penetrating into the plasma region. A soft glass capillary light pipe is disposed at the opening, is connected to the spectrometer, and is adapted to transmit light passing from the plasma region to the spectrometer. There is also a source of electromotive force connected to the electrodes sufficient to initiate and sustain a plasma in the plasma region of the tube.

Constricted glow discharge plasma source

DOEpatents

Anders, Andre; Anders, Simone; Dickinson, Michael; Rubin, Michael; Newman, Nathan

2000-01-01

A constricted glow discharge chamber and method are disclosed. The polarity and geometry of the constricted glow discharge plasma source is set so that the contamination and energy of the ions discharged from the source are minimized. The several sources can be mounted in parallel and in series to provide a sustained ultra low source of ions in a plasma with contamination below practical detection limits. The source is suitable for applying films of nitrides such as gallium nitride and oxides such as tungsten oxide and for enriching other substances in material surfaces such as oxygen and water vapor, which are difficult process as plasma in any known devices and methods. The source can also be used to assist the deposition of films such as metal films by providing low-energy ions such as argon ions.

H(-) ion source developments at the SNS.

PubMed

Welton, R F; Stockli, M P; Murray, S N; Pennisi, T R; Han, B; Kang, Y; Goulding, R H; Crisp, D W; Sparks, D O; Luciano, N P; Carmichael, J R; Carr, J

2008-02-01

The U.S. Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) will require substantially higher average and pulse H(-) beam currents than can be produced from conventional ion sources such as the base line SNS source. H(-) currents of 40-50 mA (SNS operations) and 70-100 mA (power upgrade project) with a rms emittance of 0.20-0.35pi mm mrad and a approximately 7% duty factor will be needed. We are therefore investigating several advanced ion source concepts based on rf plasma excitation. First, the performance characteristics of an external antenna source based on an Al(2)O(3) plasma chamber combined with an external multicusp magnetic configuration, an elemental Cs system, and plasma gun will be discussed. Second, the first plasma measurements of a helicon-driven H(-) ion source will also be presented.

H- ion source developments at the SNSa)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Welton, R. F.; Stockli, M. P.; Murray, S. N.; Pennisi, T. R.; Han, B.; Kang, Y.; Goulding, R. H.; Crisp, D. W.; Sparks, D. O.; Luciano, N. P.; Carmichael, J. R.; Carr, J.

2008-02-01

The U.S. Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) will require substantially higher average and pulse H- beam currents than can be produced from conventional ion sources such as the base line SNS source. H- currents of 40-50mA (SNS operations) and 70-100mA (power upgrade project) with a rms emittance of 0.20-0.35πmmmrad and a ˜7% duty factor will be needed. We are therefore investigating several advanced ion source concepts based on rf plasma excitation. First, the performance characteristics of an external antenna source based on an Al2O3 plasma chamber combined with an external multicusp magnetic configuration, an elemental Cs system, and plasma gun will be discussed. Second, the first plasma measurements of a helicon-driven H- ion source will also be presented.

Neutral-depletion-induced axially asymmetric density in a helicon source and imparted thrust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takahashi, Kazunori; Takao, Yoshinori; Ando, Akira

2016-02-01

The high plasma density downstream of the source is observed to be sustained only for a few hundreds of microsecond at the initial phase of the discharge, when pulsing the radiofrequency power of a helicon plasma thruster. Measured relative density of argon neutrals inside the source implies that the neutrals are significantly depleted there. A position giving a maximum plasma density temporally moves to the upstream side of the source due to the neutral depletion and then the exhausted plasma density significantly decreases. The direct thrust measurement demonstrates that the higher thrust-to-power ratio is obtained by using only the initial phase of the high density plasma, compared with the steady-state operation.

Negative ion source with external RF antenna

DOEpatents

Leung, Ka-Ngo; Hahto, Sami K.; Hahto, Sari T.

2007-02-13

A radio frequency (RF) driven plasma ion source has an external RF antenna, i.e. the RF antenna is positioned outside the plasma generating chamber rather than inside. The RF antenna is typically formed of a small diameter metal tube coated with an insulator. An external RF antenna assembly is used to mount the external RF antenna to the ion source. The RF antenna tubing is wound around the external RF antenna assembly to form a coil. The external RF antenna assembly is formed of a material, e.g. quartz, which is essentially transparent to the RF waves. The external RF antenna assembly is attached to and forms a part of the plasma source chamber so that the RF waves emitted by the RF antenna enter into the inside of the plasma chamber and ionize a gas contained therein. The plasma ion source is typically a multi-cusp ion source. A converter can be included in the ion source to produce negative ions.

21 CFR 866.5700 - Whole human plasma or serum immunological test system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Whole human plasma or serum immunological test... Systems § 866.5700 Whole human plasma or serum immunological test system. (a) Identification. A whole human plasma or serum immunological test system is a device that consists of reagents used to measure by...

21 CFR 866.5700 - Whole human plasma or serum immunological test system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Whole human plasma or serum immunological test... Systems § 866.5700 Whole human plasma or serum immunological test system. (a) Identification. A whole human plasma or serum immunological test system is a device that consists of reagents used to measure by...

21 CFR 866.5700 - Whole human plasma or serum immunological test system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Whole human plasma or serum immunological test... Systems § 866.5700 Whole human plasma or serum immunological test system. (a) Identification. A whole human plasma or serum immunological test system is a device that consists of reagents used to measure by...

21 CFR 866.5700 - Whole human plasma or serum immunological test system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Whole human plasma or serum immunological test... Systems § 866.5700 Whole human plasma or serum immunological test system. (a) Identification. A whole human plasma or serum immunological test system is a device that consists of reagents used to measure by...

21 CFR 866.5700 - Whole human plasma or serum immunological test system.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Whole human plasma or serum immunological test... Systems § 866.5700 Whole human plasma or serum immunological test system. (a) Identification. A whole human plasma or serum immunological test system is a device that consists of reagents used to measure by...

Negative ion source with hollow cathode discharge plasma

DOEpatents

Hershcovitch, Ady; Prelec, Krsto

1983-01-01

A negative ion source of the type where negative ions are formed by bombarding a low-work-function surface with positive ions and neutral particles from a plasma, wherein a highly ionized plasma is injected into an anode space containing the low-work-function surface. The plasma is formed by hollow cathode discharge and injected into the anode space along the magnetic field lines. Preferably, the negative ion source is of the magnetron type.

The HelCat basic plasma science device

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gilmore, M.; Lynn, A. G.; Desjardins, T. R.; Zhang, Y.; Watts, C.; Hsu, S. C.; Betts, S.; Kelly, R.; Schamiloglu, E.

2015-01-01

The Helicon-Cathode(HelCat) device is a medium-size linear experiment suitable for a wide range of basic plasma science experiments in areas such as electrostatic turbulence and transport, magnetic relaxation, and high power microwave (HPM)-plasma interactions. The HelCat device is based on dual plasma sources located at opposite ends of the 4 m long vacuum chamber - an RF helicon source at one end and a thermionic cathode at the other. Thirteen coils provide an axial magnetic field B >= 0.220 T that can be configured individually to give various magnetic configurations (e.g. solenoid, mirror, cusp). Additional plasma sources, such as a compact coaxial plasma gun, are also utilized in some experiments, and can be located either along the chamber for perpendicular (to the background magnetic field) plasma injection, or at one of the ends for parallel injection. Using the multiple plasma sources, a wide range of plasma parameters can be obtained. Here, the HelCat device is described in detail and some examples of results from previous and ongoing experiments are given. Additionally, examples of planned experiments and device modifications are also discussed.

Impurities, temperature, and density in a miniature electrostatic plasma and current source

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Den Hartog, D.J.; Craig, D.J.; Fiksel, G.

1996-10-01

We have spectroscopically investigated the Sterling Scientific miniature electrostatic plasma source-a plasma gun. This gun is a clean source of high density (10{sup 19} - 10{sup 20} m{sup -3}), low temperature (5 - 15 eV) plasma. A key result of our investigation is that molybdenum from the gun electrodes is largely trapped in the internal gun discharge; only a small amount escapes in the plasma flowing out of the gun. In addition, the gun plasma parameters actually improve (even lower impurity contamination and higher ion temperature) when up to 1 kA of electron current is extracted from the gun viamore » the application of an external bias. This improvement occurs because the internal gun anode no longer acts as the current return for the internal gun discharge. The gun plasma is a virtual plasma electrode capable of sourcing an electron emission current density of 1 kA/cm{sup 2}. The high emission current, small size (3 - 4 cm diameter), and low impurity generation make this gun attractive for a variety of fusion and plasma technology applications.« less

Theoretical and experimental studies of a planar inductive coupled rf plasma source as the driver in simulator facility (ISTAPHM) of interactions of waves with the edge plasma on tokamaks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghanei, V.; Nasrabadi, M. N.; Chin, O.-H.; Jayapalan, K. K.

2017-11-01

This research aims to design and build a planar inductive coupled RF plasma source device which is the driver of the simulator project (ISTAPHM) of the interactions between ICRF Antenna and Plasma on tokamak by using the AMPICP model. For this purpose, a theoretical derivation of the distribution of the RF magnetic field in the plasma-filled reactor chamber is presented. An experimental investigation of the field distributions is described and Langmuir measurements are developed numerically. A comparison of theory and experiment provides an evaluation of plasma parameters in the planar ICP reactor. The objective of this study is to characterize the plasma produced by the source alone. We present the results of the first analysis of the plasma characteristics (plasma density, electron temperature, electron-ion collision frequency, particle fluxes and their velocities, stochastic frequency, skin depth and electron energy distribution functions) as function of the operating parameters (injected power, neutral pressure and magnetic field) as measured with fixed and movable Langmuir probes. The plasma is currently produced only by the planar ICP. The exact goal of these experiments is that the produced plasma by external source can exist as a plasma representative of the edge of tokamaks.

Iogenic Plasma and its Rotation-Driven Transport in Jupiter's Magnetosphere

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smyth, William H.

2001-01-01

Model calculations are reported for the Iogenic plasma source created by atomic oxygen and sulfur above Io's exobase in the corona and extended clouds (Outer Region). On a circumplanetary scale, two-dimensional distributions produced by integrating the proper three dimensional rate information for electron impact and charge exchange processes along the magnetic field lines are presented for the pickup ion rates, the net-mass and total-mass loading rates, the mass per unit magnetic flux rate, the pickup conductivity, the radial pickup current, and the net-energy loading rate for the plasma torus. All of the two-dimensional distributions are highly peaked at Io's location and hence highly asymmetric about Jupiter. The Iogenic plasma source is also calculated on a much smaller near-Io scale to investigate the structure of the highly peak rates centered about lo's instantaneous location. The Iogenic plasma source for the Inner Region (pickup rates produced below Io's exobase) is, however, expected to be the dominant source near lo for the formation of the plasma torus ribbon and to be a comparable source, if not a larger contributor, to the energy budget of the plasma torus, so as to provide the necessary power to sustain the plasma torus radiative loss rate.

Pulsed, atmospheric pressure plasma source for emission spectrometry

DOEpatents

Duan, Yixiang; Jin, Zhe; Su, Yongxuan

2004-05-11

A low-power, plasma source-based, portable molecular light emission generator/detector employing an atmospheric pressure pulsed-plasma for molecular fragmentation and excitation is described. The average power required for the operation of the plasma is between 0.02 W and 5 W. The features of the optical emission spectra obtained with the pulsed plasma source are significantly different from those obtained with direct current (dc) discharge higher power; for example, strong CH emission at 431.2 nm which is only weakly observed with dc plasma sources was observed, and the intense CN emission observed at 383-388 nm using dc plasma sources was weak in most cases. Strong CN emission was only observed using the present apparatus when compounds containing nitrogen, such as aniline were employed as samples. The present apparatus detects dimethylsulfoxide at 200 ppb using helium as the plasma gas by observing the emission band of the CH radical. When coupled with a gas chromatograph for separating components present in a sample to be analyzed, the present invention provides an apparatus for detecting the arrival of a particular component in the sample at the end of the chromatographic column and the identity thereof.

A novel workflow combining plaque imaging, plaque and plasma proteomics identifies biomarkers of human coronary atherosclerotic plaque disruption.

PubMed

Lee, Regent; Fischer, Roman; Charles, Philip D; Adlam, David; Valli, Alessandro; Di Gleria, Katalin; Kharbanda, Rajesh K; Choudhury, Robin P; Antoniades, Charalambos; Kessler, Benedikt M; Channon, Keith M

2017-01-01

Atherosclerotic plaque rupture is the culprit event which underpins most acute vascular syndromes such as acute myocardial infarction. Novel biomarkers of plaque rupture could improve biological understanding and clinical management of patients presenting with possible acute vascular syndromes but such biomarker(s) remain elusive. Investigation of biomarkers in the context of de novo plaque rupture in humans is confounded by the inability to attribute the plaque rupture as the source of biomarker release, as plaque ruptures are typically associated with prompt down-stream events of myocardial necrosis and systemic inflammation. We developed a novel approach to identify potential biomarkers of plaque rupture by integrating plaque imaging, using optical coherence tomography, with both plaque and plasma proteomic analysis in a human model of angioplasty-induced plaque disruption. We compared two pairs of coronary plaque debris, captured by a FilterWire Device, and their corresponding control samples and found matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) to be significantly enriched in plaque. Plaque contents, as defined by optical coherence tomography, affect the systemic changes of MMP9. Disruption of lipid-rich plaque led to prompt elevation of plasma MMP9, whereas disruption of non-lipid-rich plaque resulted in delayed elevation of plasma MMP9. Systemic MMP9 elevation is independent of the associated myocardial necrosis and systemic inflammation (measured by Troponin I and C-reactive protein, respectively). This information guided the selection of a subset of subjects of for further label free proteomics analysis by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). We discovered five novel, plaque-enriched proteins (lipopolysaccharide binding protein, Annexin A5, eukaryotic translocation initiation factor, syntaxin 11, cytochrome B5 reductase 3) to be significantly elevated in systemic circulation at 5 min after plaque disruption. This novel approach for biomarker discovery in human coronary artery plaque disruption can identify new biomarkers related to human coronary artery plaque composition and disruption.

Studies of waves and instabilities using increased beta, warm ion plasmas in LAPD

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carter, Troy; Dorfman, Seth; Gekelman, Walter; Vincena, Steve; van Compernolle, Bart; Tripathi, Shreekrishna; Pribyl, Pat; Morales, George

2015-11-01

A new plasma source based on a Lanthanum Hexaboride (LAB6) emissive cathode has been developed and installed on the LArge Plasma Device (LAPD) at UCLA. The new source provides a much higher discharge current density (compared to the standard LAPD Barium Oxide source) resulting in a factor of ~ 50 increase in plasma density and a factor of ~ 2 - 3 increase in electron temperature. Due to the increased density the ion-electron energy exchange time is shorter in the new plasma, resulting in warm ions (measured spectroscopically to be ~ 5 - 6 eV, up from <~ 1 eV in the standard source plasma). This increased pressure combined with lowered magnetic field provides access to magnetized plasmas with β up to order unity. Topics under investigation include the physics of Alfvén waves in increased β plasmas (dispersion and kinetic damping on ions), electromagnetic effects and magnetic transport in drift-Alfvén wave turbulence, and the excitation of ion-temperature-anisotropy driven modes such as the mirror and firehose instabilities. The capabilities of the new source will be discussed along with initial experimental resuls on electromagnetic drift-Alfvén wave turbulence and Alfvén wave propagation with increased plasma β. Supported by NSF and DOE.

RF H-minus ion source development in China spallation neutron source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, W.; Ouyang, H.; Xiao, Y.; Liu, S.; Lü, Y.; Cao, X.; Huang, T.; Xue, K.

2017-08-01

China Spallation Neutron Source (CSNS) phase-I project currently uses a Penning surface plasma H- ion source, which has a life time of several weeks with occasional sparks between high voltage electrodes. To extend the life time of the ion source and prepare for the CSNS phase-II, we are trying to develop a RF negative hydrogen ion source with external antenna. The configuration of the source is similar to the DESY external antenna ion source and SNS ion source. However several changes are made to improve the stability and the life time. Firstly, Si3N4 ceramic with high thermal shock resistance, and high thermal conductivity is used for plasma chamber, which can endure an average power of 2000W. Secondly, the water-cooled antenna is brazed on the chamber to improve the energy efficiency. Thirdly, cesium is injected directly to the plasma chamber if necessary, to simplify the design of the converter and the extraction. Area of stainless steel exposed to plasma is minimized to reduce the sputtering and degassing. Instead Mo, Ta, and Pt coated materials are used to face the plasma, which makes the self-cleaning of the source possible.

High-Throughput HPLC-MS/MS Method for Quantification of Ibuprofen Enantiomers in Human Plasma: Focus on Investigation of Metabolite Interference.

PubMed

Nakov, Natalija; Bogdanovska, Liljana; Acevska, Jelena; Tonic-Ribarska, Jasmina; Petkovska, Rumenka; Dimitrovska, Aneta; Kasabova, Lilia; Svinarov, Dobrin

2016-11-01

In this research, as a part of the development of fast and reliable HPLC-MS/MS method for quantification of ibuprofen (IBP) enantiomers in human plasma, the possibility of IBP acylglucoronide (IBP-Glu) back-conversion was assessed. This involved investigation of in source and in vitro back-conversion. The separation of IBP enantiomers, its metabolite and rac-IBP-d3 (internal standard), was achieved within 6 min using Chiracel OJ-RH chromatographic column (150 × 2.1 mm, 5 μm). The followed selected reaction monitoring transitions for IBP-Glu (m/z 381.4 → 205.4, m/z 381.4 → 161.4 and m/z 205.4 → 161.4) implied that under the optimized electrospray ionization parameters, in source back-conversion of IBP-Glu was insignificant. The results obtained after liquid-liquid extraction of plasma samples spiked with IBP-Glu revealed that the amount of IBP enantiomers generated by IBP-Glu back-conversion was far <20% of lower limit of quantification sample. These results indicate that the presence of IBP-Glu in real samples will not affect the quantification of the IBP enantiomers; thereby reliability of the method was improved. Additional advantage of the method is the short analysis time making it suitable for the large number of samples. The method was fully validated according to the EMA guideline and was shown to meet all requirements to be applied in a pharmacokinetic study. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Development of alternative plasma sources for cavity ring-down measurements of mercury.

PubMed

Duan, Yixiang; Wang, Chuji; Scherrer, Susan T; Winstead, Christopher B

2005-08-01

We have been exploring innovative technologies for elemental and hyperfine structure measurements using cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) combined with various plasma sources. A laboratory CRDS system utilizing a tunable dye laser is employed in this work to demonstrate the feasibility of the technology. An in-house fabricated sampling system is used to generate aerosols from solution samples and introduce the aerosols into the plasma source. The ring-down signals are monitored using a photomultiplier tube and recorded using a digital oscilloscope interfaced to a computer. Several microwave plasma discharge devices are tested for mercury CRDS measurement. Various discharge tubes have been designed and tested to reduce background interference and increase the sample path length while still controlling turbulence generated from the plasma gas flow. Significant background reduction has been achieved with the implementation of the newly designed tube-shaped plasma devices, which has resulted in a detection limit of 0.4 ng/mL for mercury with the plasma source CRDS. The calibration curves obtained in this work readily show that linearity over 2 orders of magnitude can be obtained with plasma-CRDS for mercury detection. In this work, the hyperfine structure of mercury at the experimental plasma temperatures is clearly identified. We expect that plasma source cavity ring-down spectroscopy will provide enhanced capabilities for elemental and isotopic measurements.

The plasma membrane permease PfNT1 is essential for purine salvage in the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum.

PubMed

El Bissati, Kamal; Zufferey, Rachel; Witola, William H; Carter, Nicola S; Ullman, Buddy; Ben Mamoun, Choukri

2006-06-13

The human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum relies on the acquisition of host purines for its survival within human erythrocytes. Purine salvage by the parasite requires specialized transporters at the parasite plasma membrane (PPM), but the exact mechanism of purine entry into the infected erythrocyte, and the primary purine source used by the parasite, remain unknown. Here, we report that transgenic parasites lacking the PPM transporter PfNT1 (P. falciparum nucleoside transporter 1) are auxotrophic for hypoxanthine, inosine, and adenosine under physiological conditions and are viable only if these normally essential nutrients are provided at excess concentrations. Transport measurements across the PPM revealed a severe reduction in hypoxanthine uptake in the knockout, whereas adenosine and inosine transport were only partially affected. These data provide compelling evidence for a sequential pathway for exogenous purine conversion into hypoxanthine using host enzymes followed by PfNT1-mediated transport into the parasite. The phenotype of the conditionally lethal mutant establishes PfNT1 as a critical component of purine salvage in P. falciparum and validates PfNT1 as a potential therapeutic target.

Stereoselective binding of doxazosin enantiomers to plasma proteins from rats, dogs and humans in vitro

PubMed Central

Sun, Jia-an; Kong, De-zhi; Zhen, Ya-qin; Li, Qing; Zhang, Wei; Zhang, Jiang-hua; Yin, Zhi-wei; Ren, Lei-ming

2013-01-01

Aim: (±)Doxazosin is a long-lasting inhibitor of α1-adrenoceptors that is widely used to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia and lower urinary tract symptoms. In this study we investigated the stereoselective binding of doxazosin enantiomers to the plasma proteins of rats, dogs and humans in vitro. Methods: Human, dog and rat plasma were prepared. Equilibrium dialysis was used to determine the plasma protein binding of each enantiomer in vitro. Chiral HPLC with fluorescence detection was used to measure the drug concentrations on each side of the dialysis membrane bag. Results: Both the enantiomers were highly bound to the plasma proteins of rats, dogs and humans [(−)doxazosin: 89.4%–94.3%; (+)doxazosin: 90.9%–95.4%]. (+)Doxazosin exhibited significantly higher protein binding capacities than (−)doxazosin in all the three species, and the difference in the bound concentration (Cb) between the two enantiomers was enhanced as their concentrations were increased. Although the percentage of the plasma protein binding in the dog plasma was significantly lower than that in the human plasma at 400 and 800 ng/mL, the corrected percentage of plasma protein binding was dog>human>rat. Conclusion: (−)Doxazosin and (+)doxazosin show stereoselective plasma protein binding with a significant species difference among rats, dogs and humans. PMID:24241343

Ring current dynamics and plasma sheet sources. [magnetic storms

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lyons, L. R.

1984-01-01

The source of the energized plasma that forms in geomagnetic storm ring currents, and ring current decay are discussed. The dominant loss processes for ring current ions are identified as charge exchange and resonant interactions with ion-cyclotron waves. Ring current ions are not dominated by protons. At L4 and energies below a few tens of keV, O+ is the most abundant ion, He+ is second, and protons are third. The plasma sheet contributes directly or indirectly to the ring current particle population. An important source of plasma sheet ions is earthward streaming ions on the outer boundary of the plasma sheet. Ion interactions with the current across the geomagnetic tail can account for the formation of this boundary layer. Electron interactions with the current sheet are possibly an important source of plasma sheet electrons.

Combustion flame-plasma hybrid reactor systems, and chemical reactant sources

DOEpatents

Kong, Peter C

2013-11-26

Combustion flame-plasma hybrid reactor systems, chemical reactant sources, and related methods are disclosed. In one embodiment, a combustion flame-plasma hybrid reactor system comprising a reaction chamber, a combustion torch positioned to direct a flame into the reaction chamber, and one or more reactant feed assemblies configured to electrically energize at least one electrically conductive solid reactant structure to form a plasma and feed each electrically conductive solid reactant structure into the plasma to form at least one product is disclosed. In an additional embodiment, a chemical reactant source for a combustion flame-plasma hybrid reactor comprising an elongated electrically conductive reactant structure consisting essentially of at least one chemical reactant is disclosed. In further embodiments, methods of forming a chemical reactant source and methods of chemically converting at least one reactant into at least one product are disclosed.

The Human Plasma Proteome Draft of 2017: Building on the Human Plasma PeptideAtlas from Mass Spectrometry and Complementary Assays.

PubMed

Schwenk, Jochen M; Omenn, Gilbert S; Sun, Zhi; Campbell, David S; Baker, Mark S; Overall, Christopher M; Aebersold, Ruedi; Moritz, Robert L; Deutsch, Eric W

2017-12-01

Human blood plasma provides a highly accessible window to the proteome of any individual in health and disease. Since its inception in 2002, the Human Proteome Organization's Human Plasma Proteome Project (HPPP) has been promoting advances in the study and understanding of the full protein complement of human plasma and on determining the abundance and modifications of its components. In 2017, we review the history of the HPPP and the advances of human plasma proteomics in general, including several recent achievements. We then present the latest 2017-04 build of Human Plasma PeptideAtlas, which yields ∼43 million peptide-spectrum matches and 122,730 distinct peptide sequences from 178 individual experiments at a 1% protein-level FDR globally across all experiments. Applying the latest Human Proteome Project Data Interpretation Guidelines, we catalog 3509 proteins that have at least two non-nested uniquely mapping peptides of nine amino acids or more and >1300 additional proteins with ambiguous evidence. We apply the same two-peptide guideline to historical PeptideAtlas builds going back to 2006 and examine the progress made in the past ten years in plasma proteome coverage. We also compare the distribution of proteins in historical PeptideAtlas builds in various RNA abundance and cellular localization categories. We then discuss advances in plasma proteomics based on targeted mass spectrometry as well as affinity assays, which during early 2017 target ∼2000 proteins. Finally, we describe considerations about sample handling and study design, concluding with an outlook for future advances in deciphering the human plasma proteome.

Material impacts and heat flux characterization of an electrothermal plasma source with an applied magnetic field

DOE PAGES

Gebhart, T. E.; Martinez-Rodriguez, R. A.; Baylor, L. R.; ...

2017-08-11

To produce a realistic tokamak-like plasma environment in linear plasma device, a transient source is needed to deliver heat and particle fluxes similar to those seen in an edge localized mode (ELM). ELMs in future large tokamaks will deliver heat fluxes of ~1 GW/m 2 to the divertor plasma facing components at a few Hz. An electrothermal plasma source can deliver heat fluxes of this magnitude. These sources operate in an ablative arc regime which is driven by a DC capacitive discharge. An electrothermal source was configured in this paper with two pulse lengths and tested under a solenoidal magneticmore » field to determine the resulting impact on liner ablation, plasma parameters, and delivered heat flux. The arc travels through and ablates a boron nitride liner and strikes a tungsten plate. Finally, the tungsten target plate is analyzed for surface damage using a scanning electron microscope.« less

Material impacts and heat flux characterization of an electrothermal plasma source with an applied magnetic field

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gebhart, T. E.; Martinez-Rodriguez, R. A.; Baylor, L. R.

To produce a realistic tokamak-like plasma environment in linear plasma device, a transient source is needed to deliver heat and particle fluxes similar to those seen in an edge localized mode (ELM). ELMs in future large tokamaks will deliver heat fluxes of ~1 GW/m 2 to the divertor plasma facing components at a few Hz. An electrothermal plasma source can deliver heat fluxes of this magnitude. These sources operate in an ablative arc regime which is driven by a DC capacitive discharge. An electrothermal source was configured in this paper with two pulse lengths and tested under a solenoidal magneticmore » field to determine the resulting impact on liner ablation, plasma parameters, and delivered heat flux. The arc travels through and ablates a boron nitride liner and strikes a tungsten plate. Finally, the tungsten target plate is analyzed for surface damage using a scanning electron microscope.« less

DNA aptamer affinity ligands for highly selective purification of human plasma-related proteins from multiple sources.

PubMed

Forier, Cynthia; Boschetti, Egisto; Ouhammouch, Mohamed; Cibiel, Agnès; Ducongé, Frédéric; Nogré, Michel; Tellier, Michel; Bataille, Damien; Bihoreau, Nicolas; Santambien, Patrick; Chtourou, Sami; Perret, Gérald

2017-03-17

Nucleic acid aptamers are promising ligands for analytical and preparative-scale affinity chromatography applications. However, a full industrial exploitation requires that aptamer-grafted chromatography media provide a number of high technical standards that remained largely untested. Ideally, they should exhibit relatively high binding capacity associated to a very high degree of specificity. In addition, they must be highly resistant to harsh cleaning/sanitization conditions, as well as to prolonged and repeated exposure to biological environment. Here, we present practical examples of aptamer affinity chromatography for the purification of three human therapeutic proteins from various sources: Factor VII, Factor H and Factor IX. In a single chromatographic step, three DNA aptamer ligands enabled the efficient purification of their target protein, with an unprecedented degree of selectivity (from 0.5% to 98% of purity in one step). Furthermore, these aptamers demonstrated a high stability under harsh sanitization conditions (100h soaking in 1M NaOH). These results pave the way toward a wider adoption of aptamer-based affinity ligands in the industrial-scale purification of not only plasma-derived proteins but also of any other protein in general. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Intense steady state electron beam generator

DOEpatents

Hershcovitch, A.; Kovarik, V.J.; Prelec, K.

1990-07-17

An intense, steady state, low emittance electron beam generator is formed by operating a hollow cathode discharge plasma source at critical levels in combination with an extraction electrode and a target electrode that are operable to extract a beam of fast primary electrons from the plasma source through a negatively biased grid that is critically operated to repel bulk electrons toward the plasma source while allowing the fast primary electrons to move toward the target in the desired beam that can be successfully transported for relatively large distances, such as one or more meters away from the plasma source. 2 figs.

Intense steady state electron beam generator

DOEpatents

Hershcovitch, Ady; Kovarik, Vincent J.; Prelec, Krsto

1990-01-01

An intense, steady state, low emittance electron beam generator is formed by operating a hollow cathode discharge plasma source at critical levels in combination with an extraction electrode and a target electrode that are operable to extract a beam of fast primary electrons from the plasma source through a negatively biased grid that is critically operated to repel bulk electrons toward the plasma source while allowing the fast primary electrons to move toward the target in the desired beam that can be successfully transported for relatively large distances, such as one or more meters away from the plasma source.

Contributions of immunoaffinity chromatography to deep proteome profiling of human biofluids

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wu, Chaochao; Duan, Jicheng; Liu, Tao

2016-05-01

Human biofluids, especially blood plasma or serum, hold great potential as the sources of potential biomarkers for various diseases; however, the enormous dynamic range of protein concentrations in biofluids represents a significant analytical challenge to detect promising low-abundance protein biomarkers. Over the last decade, various immunoaffinity chromatographic methods have been developed and routinely applied for separating low-abundance proteins from the high and moderate-abundance proteins, thus enabling more effective detection of low-abundance proteins. Herein, we review the advances of immunoaffinity separation methods and their contributions to the proteomics applications of different human biofluids. The limitations and future perspective of immunoaffinity separationmore » methods are also discussed.« less

Contributions of immunoaffinity chromatography to deep proteome profiling of human biofluids

DOE PAGES

Wu, Chaochao; Duan, Jicheng; Liu, Tao; ...

2016-01-12

Human biofluids, especially blood plasma or serum, hold great potential as the sources of candidate biomarkers for various diseases; however, the enormous dynamic range of protein concentrations in biofluids represents a significant analytical challenge for detecting promising low-abundance proteins. Over the last decade, various immunoaffinity chromatographic methods have been developed and routinely applied for separating low-abundance proteins from the high- and moderate-abundance proteins, thus enabling much more effective detection of low-abundance proteins. Herein, we review the advances of immunoaffinity separation methods and their contributions to the proteomic applications in human biofluids. The limitations and future perspectives of immunoaffinity separation methodsmore » are also discussed.« less

Negative ion source with hollow cathode discharge plasma

DOEpatents

Hershcovitch, A.; Prelec, K.

1980-12-12

A negative ion source of the type where negative ions are formed by bombarding a low-work-function surface with positive ions and neutral particles from a plasma, wherein a highly ionized plasma is injected into an anode space containing the low-work-function surface is described. The plasma is formed by hollow cathode discharge and injected into the anode space along the magnetic field lines. Preferably, the negative ion source is of the magnetron type.

The study of helicon plasma source.

PubMed

Miao, Ting-Ting; Zhao, Hong-Wei; Liu, Zhan-Wen; Shang, Yong; Sun, Liang-Ting; Zhang, Xue-Zhen; Zhao, Huan-Yu

2010-02-01

Helicon plasma source is known as efficient generator of uniform and high density plasma. A helicon plasma source was developed for investigation of plasma neutralization and plasma lens in the Institute of Modern Physics in China. In this paper, the characteristics of helicon plasma have been studied by using Langmuir four-probe and a high argon plasma density up to 3.9x10(13) cm(-3) have been achieved with the Nagoya type III antenna at the conditions of the magnetic intensity of 200 G, working gas pressure of 2.8x10(-3) Pa, and rf power of 1200 W with a frequency of 27.12 MHz. In the experiment, the important phenomena have been found: for a given magnetic induction intensity, the plasma density became greater with the increase in rf power and tended to saturation, and the helicon mode appeared at the rf power between 200 and 400 W.

Method development aspects for the quantitation of pharmaceutical compounds in human plasma with a matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization source in the multiple reaction monitoring mode.

PubMed

Kovarik, Peter; Grivet, Chantal; Bourgogne, Emmanuel; Hopfgartner, Gérard

2007-01-01

The present work investigates various method development aspects for the quantitative analysis of pharmaceutical compounds in human plasma using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization and multiple reaction monitoring (MALDI-MRM). Talinolol was selected as a model analyte. Liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) and protein precipitation were evaluated regarding sensitivity and throughput for the MALDI-MRM technique and its applicability without and with chromatographic separation. Compared to classical electrospray liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-MS) method development, with MALDI-MRM the tuning of the analyte in single MS mode is more challenging due to interfering matrix background ions. An approach is proposed using background subtraction. With LLE and using a 200 microL human plasma aliquot acceptable precision and accuracy could be obtained in the range of 1 to 1000 ng/mL without any LC separation. Approximately 3 s were required for one analysis. A full calibration curve and its quality control samples (20 samples) can be analyzed within 1 min. Combining LC with the MALDI analysis allowed improving the linearity down to 50 pg/mL, while reducing the throughput potential only by two-fold. Matrix effects are still a significant issue with MALDI but can be monitored in a similar way to that used for LC/ESI-MS analysis.

Human milk miRNAs primarily originate from the mammary gland resulting in unique miRNA profiles of fractionated milk

PubMed Central

Alsaweed, Mohammed; Lai, Ching Tat; Hartmann, Peter E.; Geddes, Donna T.; Kakulas, Foteini

2016-01-01

Human milk (HM) contains regulatory biomolecules including miRNAs, the origin and functional significance of which are still undetermined. We used TaqMan OpenArrays to profile 681 mature miRNAs in HM cells and fat, and compared them with maternal peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and plasma, and bovine and soy infant formulae. HM cells and PBMCs (292 and 345 miRNAs, respectively) had higher miRNA content than HM fat and plasma (242 and 219 miRNAs, respectively) (p < 0.05). A strong association in miRNA profiles was found between HM cells and fat, whilst PBMCs and plasma were distinctly different to HM, displaying marked inter-individual variation. Considering the dominance of epithelial cells in mature milk of healthy women, these results suggest that HM miRNAs primarily originate from the mammary epithelium, whilst the maternal circulation may have a smaller contribution. Our findings demonstrate that unlike infant formulae, which contained very few human miRNA, HM is a rich source of lactation-specific miRNA, which could be used as biomarkers of the performance and health status of the lactating mammary gland. Given the recently identified stability, uptake and functionality of food- and milk-derived miRNA in vivo, HM miRNA are likely to contribute to infant protection and development. PMID:26854194

Human milk miRNAs primarily originate from the mammary gland resulting in unique miRNA profiles of fractionated milk.

PubMed

Alsaweed, Mohammed; Lai, Ching Tat; Hartmann, Peter E; Geddes, Donna T; Kakulas, Foteini

2016-02-08

Human milk (HM) contains regulatory biomolecules including miRNAs, the origin and functional significance of which are still undetermined. We used TaqMan OpenArrays to profile 681 mature miRNAs in HM cells and fat, and compared them with maternal peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and plasma, and bovine and soy infant formulae. HM cells and PBMCs (292 and 345 miRNAs, respectively) had higher miRNA content than HM fat and plasma (242 and 219 miRNAs, respectively) (p < 0.05). A strong association in miRNA profiles was found between HM cells and fat, whilst PBMCs and plasma were distinctly different to HM, displaying marked inter-individual variation. Considering the dominance of epithelial cells in mature milk of healthy women, these results suggest that HM miRNAs primarily originate from the mammary epithelium, whilst the maternal circulation may have a smaller contribution. Our findings demonstrate that unlike infant formulae, which contained very few human miRNA, HM is a rich source of lactation-specific miRNA, which could be used as biomarkers of the performance and health status of the lactating mammary gland. Given the recently identified stability, uptake and functionality of food- and milk-derived miRNA in vivo, HM miRNA are likely to contribute to infant protection and development.

UPLC-MS-MS Method for the Determination of Vilazodone in Human Plasma: Application to a Pharmacokinetic Study.

PubMed

El-Bagary, Ramzia; Hashem, Hanaa; Fouad, Marwa; Tarek, Sally

2016-09-01

A sensitive, rapid and simple liquid chromatographic-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometric (LC-ESI-MS-MS) method was developed for the quantitative determination of vilazodone in human plasma and for the study of the pharmacokinetic behavior of vilazodone in healthy Egyptian volunteers. With escitalopram as internal standard (IS), liquid-liquid extraction was used for the purification and preconcentration of analytes from human plasma matrix using diethyl ether. The separation was performed on an Acquity UPLC BEH shield RP C18 column (1.7 µm, 2.1 × 150 mm). Isocratic elution was applied using methanol-0.2% formic acid (90:10, v/v). Detection was performed on a triple-quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer with multiple reaction monitoring mode via an electrospray ionization source at m/z 442.21 → 155.23 for vilazodone and m/z 325.14 → 109.2 for escitalopram. Linear calibration curves were obtained over the range of 1-200 ng/mL with the lower limit of quantification at 1 ng/mL. The intra- and inter-day precision showed relative standard deviation ≤3.3%. The total run time was 1.5 min. This method was successfully applied for clinical pharmacokinetic investigation, and a preliminary metabolic study was also carried out. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Arylesterase activities in the plasma of rats, rabbits and humans on low- and high-cholesterol diets.

PubMed

Beynen, A C; Weinans, G J; Katan, M B

1984-01-01

Arylesterase activities were measured with beta-naphthylpropionate and/or alpha-naphthylacetate as substrate in the plasma of rats, rabbits and humans on low- and high-cholesterol diets. The plasma esterase activities measured with alpha-naphthylacetate were similar in rats, rabbits and humans. With beta-naphthylpropionate as a substrate, rabbits were found to have a markedly higher esterase activity than rats and humans. Basal plasma esterase activity was significantly higher in an inbred rat strain which is hyporesponsive to dietary cholesterol than in a hyperresponsive strain. In rats, but not in humans and rabbits, plasma esterase activity was significantly increased by a high-cholesterol diet. In individual humans and random-bred rabbits and rats there was no association between initial plasma total esterase activity and the subsequent plasma cholesterol response to cholesterol feeding. We suggest that arylesterases are associated with cholesterol metabolism and with the response to dietary cholesterol in rats; evidence for such a role in rabbits and humans is, however, inconclusive.

Electrodeless Plasma Source: Phase II Update

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prager, James; Ziemba, Timothy; Miller, Kenneth

2012-10-01

Eagle Harbor Technologies, in collaboration with the University of Washington, has developed a low-impurity, electrode-less plasma source (EPS) for start-up and source plasma injection for fusion science applications. In order to not interfere with the experiment, a pre-ionizer/plasma source must meet a few critical criteria including low impurity production, low electromagnetic interference (EMI), and minimal disruption to the magnetic geometry of the experiment. This system was designed to be UHV compatible and bakable. Here we present the results of the EPS Phase II upgrade. The output plasma density was increased by two orders of magnitude to >10^17 m-3 in hydrogen with no magnetic field injected. EPS system integration with the HIT-SI experiment has begun.

Convex Curved Crystal Spectograph for Pulsed Plasma Sources.

DTIC Science & Technology

The geometry of a convex curved crystal spectrograph as applied to pulsed plasma sources is presented. Also presented are data from the dense plasma focus with particular emphasis on the absolute intensity of line radiations.

Plasma galanin concentrations in obese, normal weight and anorectic women.

PubMed

Invitti, C; Brunani, A; Pasqualinotto, L; Dubini, A; Bendinelli, P; Maroni, P; Cavagnini, F

1995-05-01

Galanin is believed to play a role in the control of eating behavior. No information is available on its concentrations in the biological fluids in human obesity, and this study aimed to clarify this. We measured plasma galanin and serum insulin levels in 30 obese, 35 normal weight and 11 anorectic women. Mean galanin values were quite similar in obese and control subjects (76.8 +/- 3.20 vs 76.1 +/- 2.33 pg/ml) and only slightly reduced in anorectic patients (67.9 +/- 2.30 pg/ml). Insulin levels were significantly increased and decreased in obese and anorectic patients, respectively, compared to controls. Insulin correlated positively with BMI in the whole group of subjects studied (r = 0.72, P < 0.0001) and in the obese subgroup (r = 0.56, P < 0.02). No correlations could be detected between WH ratio, insulin and galanin concentrations and between galanin and BMI. In conclusion, plasma galanin concentrations appear to be comparable in obese, normal weight and anorectic subjects. This does not exclude a role of galanin in the regulation of eating behavior since variations of the peptide in discrete brain areas may not be detectable in general circulation and peripheral sources of the peptide may contribute to its plasma levels. Also, our data suggest that galanin does not play a major role in the regulation of insulin secretion in humans.

New frontiers in gut nutrient sensor research: nutrient sensors in the gastrointestinal tract: modulation of sweet taste sensitivity by leptin.

PubMed

Horio, Nao; Jyotaki, Masafumi; Yoshida, Ryusuke; Sanematsu, Keisuke; Shigemura, Noriatsu; Ninomiya, Yuzo

2010-01-01

The ability to perceive sweet compounds is important for animals to detect an external carbohydrate source of calories and has a critical role in the nutritional status of animals. In mice, a subset of sweet-sensitive taste cells possesses leptin receptors. Increase of plasma leptin with increasing internal energy storage in the adipose tissue suppresses sweet taste responses via this receptor. The data from recent studies indicate that leptin may also act as a modulator of sweet taste sensation in humans with a diurnal variation in sweet sensitivity. The plasma leptin level and sweet taste sensitivity are proposed to link with post-ingestive plasma glucose level. This leptin modulation of sweet taste sensitivity may influence an individual's preference, ingestive behavior, and absorption of nutrients, thereby playing important roles in regulation of energy homeostasis.

The requirements for low-temperature plasma ionization support miniaturization of the ion source.

PubMed

Kiontke, Andreas; Holzer, Frank; Belder, Detlev; Birkemeyer, Claudia

2018-06-01

Ambient ionization mass spectrometry (AI-MS), the ionization of samples under ambient conditions, enables fast and simple analysis of samples without or with little sample preparation. Due to their simple construction and low resource consumption, plasma-based ionization methods in particular are considered ideal for use in mobile analytical devices. However, systematic investigations that have attempted to identify the optimal configuration of a plasma source to achieve the sensitive detection of target molecules are still rare. We therefore used a low-temperature plasma ionization (LTPI) source based on dielectric barrier discharge with helium employed as the process gas to identify the factors that most strongly influence the signal intensity in the mass spectrometry of species formed by plasma ionization. In this study, we investigated several construction-related parameters of the plasma source and found that a low wall thickness of the dielectric, a small outlet spacing, and a short distance between the plasma source and the MS inlet are needed to achieve optimal signal intensity with a process-gas flow rate of as little as 10 mL/min. In conclusion, this type of ion source is especially well suited for downscaling, which is usually required in mobile devices. Our results provide valuable insights into the LTPI mechanism; they reveal the potential to further improve its implementation and standardization for mobile mass spectrometry as well as our understanding of the requirements and selectivity of this technique. Graphical abstract Optimized parameters of a dielectric barrier discharge plasma for ionization in mass spectrometry. The electrode size, shape, and arrangement, the thickness of the dielectric, and distances between the plasma source, sample, and MS inlet are marked in red. The process gas (helium) flow is shown in black.

Intact stable isotope labeled plasma proteins from the SILAC-labeled HepG2 secretome.

PubMed

Mangrum, John B; Martin, Erika J; Brophy, Donald F; Hawkridge, Adam M

2015-09-01

The plasma proteome remains an attractive biospecimen for MS-based biomarker discovery studies. The success of these efforts relies on the continued development of quantitative MS-based proteomics approaches. Herein we report the use of the SILAC-labeled HepG2 secretome as a source for stable isotope labeled plasma proteins for quantitative LC-MS/MS measurements. The HepG2 liver cancer cell line secretes the major plasma proteins including serum albumin, apolipoproteins, protease inhibitors, coagulation factors, and transporters that represent some of the most abundant proteins in plasma. The SILAC-labeled HepG2 secretome was collected, spiked into human plasma (1:1 total protein), and then processed for LC-MS/MS analysis. A total of 62 and 56 plasma proteins were quantified (heavy:light (H/L) peptide pairs) from undepleted and depleted (serum albumin and IgG), respectively, with log2 H/L = ± 6. Major plasma proteins quantified included albumin, apolipoproteins (e.g., APOA1, APOA2, APOA4, APOB, APOC3, APOE, APOH, and APOM), protease inhibitors (e.g., A2M and SERPINs), coagulation factors (e.g., Factor V, Factor X, fibrinogen), and transport proteins (e.g., TTR). The average log2 H/L values for shared plasma proteins in both undepleted and depleted plasma samples were 0.43 and 0.44, respectively. This work further expands the SILAC strategy into MS-based biomarker discovery of clinical biospecimens. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Modelling of low-temperature/large-area distributed antenna array microwave-plasma reactor used for nanocrystalline diamond deposition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bénédic, Fabien; Baudrillart, Benoit; Achard, Jocelyn

2018-02-01

In this paper we investigate a distributed antenna array Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition system, composed of 16 microwave plasma sources arranged in a 2D matrix, which enables the growth of 4-in. diamond films at low pressure and low substrate temperature by using H2/CH4/CO2 gas chemistry. A self-consistent two-dimensional plasma model developed for hydrogen discharges is used to study the discharge behavior. Especially, the gas temperature is estimated close to 350 K at a position corresponding to the substrate location during the growth, which is suitable for low temperature deposition. Multi-source discharge modeling evidences that the uniformity of the plasma sheet formed by the individual plasmas ignited around each elementary microwave source strongly depends on the distance to the antennas. The radial profile of the film thickness homogeneity may be thus linked to the local variations of species density. Contribution to the topical issue "Plasma Sources and Plasma Processes (PSPP)", edited by Luis Lemos Alves, Thierry Belmonte and Tibeinea Minea.

Differences in the Lipoprotein Distribution of Free and Liposome-Associated All-trans-Retinoic Acid in Human, Dog, and Rat Plasma Are Due to Variations in Lipoprotein Lipid and Protein Content

PubMed Central

Wasan, Kishor M.; Ramaswamy, Manisha; Ng, Samson P.; Wong, Wesley; Parrott, Steven C.; Ojwang, Joshua O.; Wallace, Thomas; Cossum, Paul A.

1998-01-01

The objective of the proposed study was to determine the distribution in plasma lipoprotein of free all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and liposomal ATRA (Atragen; composed of dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine and soybean oil) following incubation in human, rat, and dog plasma. When ATRA and Atragen at concentrations of 1, 5, 10, and 25 μg/ml were incubated in human and rat plasma for 5, 60, and 180 min, the majority of the tretinoin was recovered in the lipoprotein-deficient plasma fraction. However, when ATRA and Atragen were incubated in dog plasma, the majority of the tretinoin (>40%) was recovered in the high-density lipoprotein (HDL) fraction. No differences in the plasma distribution between ATRA and Atragen were found. These data suggest that a significant percentage of tretinoin associates with plasma lipoproteins (primarily the HDL fraction) upon incubation in human, dog, and rat plasma. Differences between the lipoprotein lipid and protein profiles in human plasma and in dog and rat plasma influenced the plasma distribution of ATRA and Atragen. Differences in lipoprotein distribution between ATRA and Atragen were not observed, suggesting that the drug’s distribution in plasma is not influenced by its incorporation into these liposomes. PMID:9660998

Intense Plasma Waveguide Terahertz Sources for High-Field THz Probe Science with Ultrafast Lasers for Solid State Physics

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-08-25

AFRL-AFOSR-UK-TR-2016-0029 Intense Plasma-Waveguide Terahertz Sources for High-Field THz probe science with ultrafast lasers for Solid State Physics...Plasma-Waveguide Terahertz Sources for High-Field THz probe science with ultrafast lasers for Solid State Physics, 5a.  CONTRACT NUMBER 5b.  GRANT...an existing high energy laser system, has been applied to the study of intense terahertz radiation generated in gaseous plasmas in purpose

Ion heating and short wavelength fluctuations in a helicon plasma source

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Scime, E. E.; Carr, J. Jr.; Galante, M.

2013-03-15

For typical helicon source parameters, the driving antenna can couple to two plasma modes; the weakly damped 'helicon' wave, and the strongly damped, short wavelength, slow wave. Here, we present direct measurements, obtained with two different techniques, of few hundred kHz, short wavelength fluctuations that are parametrically driven by the primary antenna and localized to the edge of the plasma. The short wavelength fluctuations appear for plasma source parameters such that the driving frequency is approximately equal to the lower hybrid frequency. Measurements of the steady-state ion temperature and fluctuation amplitude radial profiles suggest that the anomalously high ion temperaturesmore » observed at the edge of helicon sources result from damping of the short wavelength fluctuations. Additional measurements of the time evolution of the ion temperature and fluctuation profiles in pulsed helicon source plasmas support the same conclusion.« less

Influence of the electron cyclotron resonance plasma confinement on reducing the bremsstrahlung production of an electron cyclotron resonance ion source with metal-dielectric structures.

PubMed

Schachter, L; Stiebing, K E; Dobrescu, S

2009-01-01

The influence of metal-dielectric (MD) layers (MD structures) inserted into the plasma chamber of an electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS) onto the production of electron bremsstrahlung radiation has been studied in a series of dedicated experiments at the 14 GHz ECRIS of the Institut für Kernphysik der Universität Frankfurt. The IKF-ECRIS was equipped with a MD liner, covering the inner walls of the plasma chamber, and a MD electrode, covering the plasma-facing side of the extraction electrode. On the basis of similar extracted currents of highly charged ions, significantly reduced yields of bremsstrahlung radiation for the "MD source" as compared to the standard (stainless steel) source have been measured and can be explained by the significantly better plasma confinement in a MD source as compared to an "all stainless steel" ECRIS.

Physical investigation of a quad confinement plasma source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knoll, Aaron; Lucca Fabris, Andrea; Young, Christopher; Cappelli, Mark

2016-10-01

Quad magnetic confinement plasma sources are novel magnetized DC discharges suitable for applications in a broad range of fields, particularly space propulsion, plasma etching and deposition. These sources contain a square discharge channel with magnetic cusps at the four lateral walls, enhancing plasma confinement and electron residence time inside the device. The magnetic field topology is manipulated using four independent electromagnets on each edge of the channel, tuning the properties of the generated plasma. We characterize the plasma ejected from the quad confinement sources using a combination of traditional electrostatic probes and non-intrusive laser-based diagnostics. Measurements show a strong ion acceleration layer located 8 cm downstream of the exit plane, beyond the extent of the magnetic field. The ion velocity field is investigated with different magnetic configurations, demonstrating how ion trajectories may be manipulated. C.Y. acknowledges support from the DOE NSSA Stewardship Science Graduate Fellowship under contract DE-FC52-08NA28752.

Enhancement of the killing effect of low-temperature plasma on Streptococcus mutans by combined treatment with gold nanoparticles.

PubMed

Park, Sang Rye; Lee, Hyun Wook; Hong, Jin Woo; Lee, Hae June; Kim, Ji Young; Choi, Byul Bo-Ra; Kim, Gyoo Cheon; Jeon, Young Chan

2014-08-08

Recently, non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma sources have been used for biomedical applications such as sterilization, cancer treatment, blood coagulation, and wound healing. Gold nanoparticles (gNPs) have unique optical properties and are useful for biomedical applications. Although low-temperature plasma has been shown to be effective in killing oral bacteria on agar plates, its bactericidal effect is negligible on the tooth surface. Therefore, we used 30-nm gNPs to enhance the killing effect of low-temperature plasma on human teeth. We tested the sterilizing effect of low-temperature plasma on Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) strains. The survival rate was assessed by bacterial viability stains and colony-forming unit counts. Low-temperature plasma treatment alone was effective in killing S. mutans on slide glasses, as shown by the 5-log decrease in viability. However, plasma treatment of bacteria spotted onto tooth surface exhibited a 3-log reduction in viability. After gNPs were added to S. mutans, plasma treatment caused a 5-log reduction in viability, while gNPs alone did not show any bactericidal effect. The morphological changes in S. mutans caused by plasma treatment were examined by transmission electron microscopy, which showed that plasma treatment only perforated the cell walls, while the combination treatment with plasma and gold nanoparticles caused significant cell rupture, causing loss of intracellular components from many cells. This study demonstrates that low-temperature plasma treatment is effective in killing S. mutans and that its killing effect is further enhanced when used in combination with gNPs.

Frequency-tuning radiofrequency plasma source operated in inductively-coupled mode under a low magnetic field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takahashi, Kazunori; Nakano, Yudai; Ando, Akira

2017-07-01

A radiofrequency (rf) inductively-coupled plasma source is operated with a frequency-tuning impedance matching system, where the rf frequency is variable in the range of 20-50 MHz and the maximum power is 100 W. The source consists of a 45 mm-diameter pyrex glass tube wound by an rf antenna and a solenoid providing a magnetic field strength in the range of 0-200 Gauss. A reflected rf power for no plasma case is minimized at the frequency of ˜25 MHz, whereas the frequency giving the minimum reflection with the high density plasma is about 28 MHz, where the density jump is observed when minimizing the reflection. A high density argon plasma above 1× {{10}12} cm-3 is successfully obtained in the source for the rf power of 50-100 W, where it is observed that an external magnetic field of a few tens of Gauss yields the highest plasma density in the present configuration. The frequency-tuning plasma source is applied to a compact and high-speed silicon etcher in an Ar-SF6 plasma; then the etching rate of 8~μ m min-1 is obtained for no bias voltage to the silicon wafer, i.e. for the case that a physical ion etching process is eliminated.

Scale-up of a physiologically-based pharmacokinetic model to predict the disposition of monoclonal antibodies in monkeys.

PubMed

Glassman, Patrick M; Chen, Yang; Balthasar, Joseph P

2015-10-01

Preclinical assessment of monoclonal antibody (mAb) disposition during drug development often includes investigations in non-human primate models. In many cases, mAb exhibit non-linear disposition that relates to mAb-target binding [i.e., target-mediated disposition (TMD)]. The goal of this work was to develop a physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) model to predict non-linear mAb disposition in plasma and in tissues in monkeys. Physiological parameters for monkeys were collected from several sources, and plasma data for several mAbs associated with linear pharmacokinetics were digitized from prior literature reports. The digitized data displayed great variability; therefore, parameters describing inter-antibody variability in the rates of pinocytosis and convection were estimated. For prediction of the disposition of individual antibodies, we incorporated tissue concentrations of target proteins, where concentrations were estimated based on categorical immunohistochemistry scores, and with assumed localization of target within the interstitial space of each organ. Kinetics of target-mAb binding and target turnover, in the presence or absence of mAb, were implemented. The model was then employed to predict concentration versus time data, via Monte Carlo simulation, for two mAb that have been shown to exhibit TMD (2F8 and tocilizumab). Model predictions, performed a priori with no parameter fitting, were found to provide good prediction of dose-dependencies in plasma clearance, the areas under plasma concentration versu time curves, and the time-course of plasma concentration data. This PBPK model may find utility in predicting plasma and tissue concentration versus time data and, potentially, the time-course of receptor occupancy (i.e., mAb-target binding) to support the design and interpretation of preclinical pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic investigations in non-human primates.

Two-Dimensional Microdischarge Jet Array in Air: Characterization and Inactivation of Virus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nayak, Gaurav

Cold atmospheric pressure plasmas (CAPs) have proven to be quite effective for surface disinfection, wound healing and even cancer treatment in recent years. One of the major societal challenges faced today is related to illness caused by food-borne bacteria and viruses, particularly in minimally processed, fresh or ready-to-eat foods. Gastroenteritis outbreaks, caused, for example, by the human Norovirus (NV) is a growing concern. Current used technologies seem not to be fully effective. In this work we focus on a possible solution based on CAP technology for surface disinfection. Many discharge sources have been studied for disinfection and the two major challenges faced are the use of expensive noble gases (Ar/He) by many plasma sources and the difficulty to scale up the plasma devices. The efficacies of these devices also vary for different plasma sources, making it difficult to compare results from different research groups. Also, the interaction of plasma with the biological matter is not understood well, particularly for virus. In this work, a two-dimensional array of micro dielectric barrier discharge is used to treat Feline Calicivirus (FCV), which is a surrogate for human Norovirus. The plasma source can be operated with an air flow rate (up to 94 standard liters per minute or slm). The use of such discharge source also raises important scientific questions which are addressed in this work. These questions include the effect of gas flow rate on discharge properties and the production of reactive species responsible for virus inactivation and the underlying inactivation mechanism. The plasma source is characterized via several diagnostic techniques such as current voltage measurements for electrical characterization and power measurements, optical emission spectroscopy (OES) to determine the gas temperature, cross-correlation spectroscopy (CCS) for microdischarge evolution and timescales, UV absorption spectroscopy to measure the O3 density, absolute IR OES to measure the O2(a 1Deltag) density and spectrophotometry to estimate the NOx species density in aqueous medium. The results show that the discharge activity is strongly dependent on the gas flow rate particularly for gas residence times comparable to the applied high voltage cycle. The maximum difference in gas temperature at extreme plasma conditions do not exceed 50 K. The NO density is found to be reducing with smaller gas residence time. It is found that the reduced field E/N is dependent on the flow rate. The observed variation in the electric field is attributed to the change in the neutral gas densities. Both gas residence time and humidity have an impact on the space-charge distribution. The O 3 density is found to increase with increasing power density and saturates at higher power above 12 W, and the maximum density of 1022 m-3 is achieved at an intermediate flow rate of 20 slm. An optimal condition for O2(a 1Deltag) generation is found that is a balance between power and gas residence. Higher specific energy leads to higher increase of O2(a 1Deltag) density as compared to the O3 density. It is also observed that the O2(a 1Deltag) to O3 density ratio could be controlled by the flow rate from 0.7 to almost 0. The discharge source is used for FCV inactivation on surfaces (in the gas phase) and suspended in solution. Discharge power and treatment time have strong effect on the reduction in virus titer, while exposure distance or flow rate have negligible effect. Humidity plays a major effect on FCV inactivation on surfaces, leading to complete inactivation (>4 log10) within 3 minutes of treatment. FCV inactivation can be explained by O3 in gas phase and RNS in liquid phase. Nonetheless synergistic effects of ROS and RNS cannot be excluded, as similar production rates of O3 and NOx in discharge are determined. The O2(a 1Deltag) density at conditions used for FCV treatment is at least 2 orders of magnitude lower than the ozone density and is not a dominant factor in the inactivation.

EDITORIAL: Gas plasmas in biology and medicine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stoffels, Eva

2006-08-01

It is my great pleasure to introduce this special cluster devoted to recent developments in biomedical plasma technology. It is an even greater pleasure to behold the enormous progress which has been made in this area over the last five years. Research on biomedical plasma applications proceeds hand in hand with the development of new material processing technologies, based on atmospheric plasma sources. In the beginning, major research effort was invested in the development and control of new plasma sources—in this laborious process, novel devices were constructed and characterized, and also new plasma physical phenomena were discovered. Self-constriction of micro-plasmas, pattern formation, filamentation of glow discharges and various mode transitions are just a few examples. It is a real challenge for theorists to gain an understanding of these complex phenomena. Later, the devices had to be thoroughly tested and automated, and various safety issues had to be addressed. At present, many atmospheric plasma sources are ready to use, but not all fundamental and technical problems have been resolved by far. There is still plenty of room for improvement, as in any dynamic area of research. The recent trends are clear: the application area of plasmas expands into processing of unconventional materials such as biological scaffolds, and eventually living human, animal and plant tissues. The gentle, precise and versatile character of cold plasmas simply invites this new application. Firstly, non-living surfaces have been plasma-treated to attain desired effects in biomedical research; tissue engineering will soon fully profit from this powerful technique. Furthermore, studies on cultured plant and animal cells have provided many findings, which are both fundamentally interesting and potentially applicable in health care, veterinary medicine and agriculture. The most important and hitherto unique property of plasma treatment is that it can evade accidental cell death and its attendant complications, such as inflammation and scarring. Another substantial research direction makes use of the bactericidal properties of the plasma. The number of findings on plasma inactivation of bacteria and spores is growing; plasma sterilization has already achieved some commercial success. In future, bacteriostatic properties of cold plasmas will even facilitate non-contact disinfection of human tissues. At this moment, one cannot explicitly list all the medical procedures in which cold plasmas will be involved. My personal intuition predicts widespread use of plasma treatment in dentistry and dermatology, but surely more applications will emerge in the course of this multi-disciplinary research. In fact, some plasma techniques, such as coagulation and coblation, are already used in clinical practice—this is another image of plasma science, which is so far unfamiliar to plasma physicists. Therefore, this particular topic forms a perfect platform for contacts between physicists and medical experts. Our colleagues from the medical scientific community will continue giving us feedback, suggestions or even orders. Biomedical plasmas should not become an isolated research area—we must grow together with medical research, listen to criticism, and eventually serve the physicians. Only then will this new field grow, flourish and bear fruit. All the above-mentioned topics meet in this issue of Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, comprising the most significant examples of modern biomedical plasma research. Browsing through the contributions, the reader can trace back the progress in this field: from fundamental physical (numerical) studies, through phenomenology and physics of new discharges, studies on plasma-surface modification, bacterial inactivation tests, fundamental cell biological investigations, to final in vivo applications. One may ask why this selection has found its place in a purely physical journal—many contributions are concerned with (micro)-biology rather than physics. To me, the answer is clear: it is important to maintain the visibility of this fascinating and growing cross-disciplinary field within the (plasma) physical community. This is not the `physics we are used to', but one we will eventually get used to and accept.

Measurements and modeling of the impact of weak magnetic fields on the plasma properties of a planar slot antenna driven plasma source

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yoshikawa, Jun, E-mail: jun.yoshikawa@tel.com; Susa, Yoshio; Ventzek, Peter L. G.

The radial line slot antenna plasma source is a type of surface wave plasma source driven by a planar slot antenna. Microwave power is transmitted through a slot antenna structure and dielectric window to a plasma characterized by a generation zone adjacent to the window and a diffusion zone that contacts a substrate. The diffusion zone is characterized by a very low electron temperature. This renders the source useful for soft etch applications and thin film deposition processes requiring low ion energy. Another property of the diffusion zone is that the plasma density tends to decrease from the axis tomore » the walls under the action of ambipolar diffusion at distances far from where the plasma is generated. A previous simulation study [Yoshikawa and. Ventzek, J. Vac. Sci. Technol. A 31, 031306 (2013)] predicted that the anisotropy in transport parameters due to weak static magnetic fields less than 50 G could be leveraged to manipulate the plasma profile in the radial direction. These simulations motivated experimental tests in which weak magnetic fields were applied to a radial line slot antenna source. Plasma absorption probe measurements of electron density and etch rate showed that the magnetic fields remote from the wafer were able to manipulate both parameters. A summary of these results is presented in this paper. Argon plasma simulation trends are compared with experimental plasma and etch rate measurements. A test of the impact of magnetic fields on charge up damage showed no perceptible negative effect.« less

Concentric micro-nebulizer for direct sample insertion

DOEpatents

Fassel, V.A.; Rice, G.W.; Lawrence, K.E.

1984-03-06

A concentric micro-nebulizer and method for introducing liquid samples into a plasma established in a plasma torch including a first tube connected to a source of plasma gas. The concentric micro-nebulizer has inner and outer concentric tubes extending upwardly within the torch for connection to a source of nebulizer gas and to a source of liquid solvent and to a source of sample liquid. The inner tube is connected to the source of liquid solvent and to the source of sample liquid and the outer tube is connected to the source of nebulizer gas. The outer tube has an orifice positioned slightly below the plasma when it is established, with the inner and outer tubes forming an annulus therebetween with the annular spacing between the tubes at said orifice being less than about 0.05mm. The dead volume of the inner tube is less than about 5 microliters.

Concentric micro-nebulizer for direct sample insertion

DOEpatents

Fassel, Velmer A.; Rice, Gary W.; Lawrence, Kimberly E.

1986-03-11

A concentric micro-nebulizer and method for introducing liquid samples into a plasma established in a plasma torch including a first tube connected to a source of plasma gas. The concentric micro-nebulizer has inner and outer concentric tubes extending upwardly within the torch for connection to a source of nebulizer gas and to a source of liquid solvent and to a source of sample liquid. The inner tube is connected to the source of liquid solvent and to the source of sample liquid and the outer tube is connected to the source of nebulizer gas. The outer tube has an orifice positioned slightly below the plasma when it is established, with the inner and outer tubes forming an annulus therebetween with the annular spacing between the tubes at said orifice being less than about 0.05 mm. The dead volume of the inner tube is less than about 5 microliters.

Very Large Area/Volume Microwave ECR Plasma and Ion Source

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Foster, John E. (Inventor); Patterson, Michael J. (Inventor)

2009-01-01

The present invention is an apparatus and method for producing very large area and large volume plasmas. The invention utilizes electron cyclotron resonances in conjunction with permanent magnets to produce dense, uniform plasmas for long life ion thruster applications or for plasma processing applications such as etching, deposition, ion milling and ion implantation. The large area source is at least five times larger than the 12-inch wafers being processed to date. Its rectangular shape makes it easier to accommodate to materials processing than sources that are circular in shape. The source itself represents the largest ECR ion source built to date. It is electrodeless and does not utilize electromagnets to generate the ECR magnetic circuit, nor does it make use of windows.

Non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma source techniques on 3,7- bis (dimethylamino)-phenothiazin-5-ium chloride

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kotowich, Steven

Studies of a non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma source on an organic heterocycle were conducted to determine reaction parameters and rearrangement conditions. The target compound 3,7-bis(dimethylamino)-phenothiazin-5-ium chloride, commonly referred to as methylene blue, was determine to polymerize after exposure to a non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma source. The presence of charge retention and a free electron radical were detected inherent to the polymer. Evaluation of the structure and mechanism of the polymer were also presented for evidence and clarification. Additional description of the plasma source environment was correlated to the manipulation of the target compound.

RF Plasma Source for Heavy Ion Beam Charge Neutralization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Efthimion, P. C.; Gilson, E.; Grisham, L.; Davidson, R. C.

2003-10-01

Highly ionized plasmas are being employed as a medium for charge neutralizing heavy ion beams in order to focus to a small spot size. Calculations suggest that plasma at a density of 1 - 100 times the ion beam density and at a length 0.1-0.5 m would be suitable for achieving a high level of charge neutralization. An ECR source has been built at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) in support of the joint Neutralized Transport Experiment (NTX) at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) to study ion beam neutralization with plasma. The ECR source operates at 13.6 MHz and with solenoid magnetic fields of 0-10 gauss. The goal is to operate the source at pressures 10-5 Torr at full ionization. The initial operation of the source has been at pressures of 10-4 - 10-1 Torr. Electron densities in the range of 10^8 - 10^11 cm-3 have been achieved. Recently, pulsed operation of the source has enabled operation at pressures in the 10-6 Torr range with densities of 10^11 cm-3. Near 100% ionization has been achieved. The source has been integrated with NTX and is being used in the experiments. The plasma is approximately 10 cm in length in the direction of the beam propagation. Modifications to the source will be presented that increase its length in the direction of beam propagation.

Developing the RAL front end test stand source to deliver a 60 mA, 50 Hz, 2 ms H- beam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Faircloth, Dan; Lawrie, Scott; Letchford, Alan; Gabor, Christoph; Perkins, Mike; Whitehead, Mark; Wood, Trevor; Tarvainen, Olli; Komppula, Jani; Kalvas, Taneli; Dudnikov, Vadim; Pereira, Hugo; Izaola, Zunbeltz; Simkin, John

2013-02-01

All the Front End Test Stand (FETS) beam requirements have been achieved, but not simultaneously [1]. At 50 Hz repetition rates beam current droop becomes unacceptable for pulse lengths longer than 1 ms. This is fundamental limitation of the present source design. Previous researchers [2] have demonstrated that using a physically larger Penning surface plasma source should overcome these limitations. The scaled source development strategy is outlined in this paper. A study of time-varying plasma behavior has been performed using a V-UV spectrometer. Initial experiments to test scaled plasma volumes are outlined. A dedicated plasma and extraction test stand (VESPA-Vessel for Extraction and Source Plasma Analysis) is being developed to allow new source and extraction designs to be appraised. The experimental work is backed up by modeling and simulations. A detailed ANSYS thermal model has been developed. IBSimu is being used to design extraction and beam transport. A novel 3D plasma modeling code using beamlets is being developed by Cobham Vector Fields using SCALA OPERA, early source modeling results are very promising. Hardware on FETS is also being developed in preparation to run the scaled source. A new 2 ms, 50 Hz, 25 kV pulsed extraction voltage power supply has been constructed and a new discharge power supply is being designed. The design of the post acceleration electrode assembly has been improved.

Plasma Flow During RF Discharges in VASIMR

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jacobson, V. T.; Chang Diaz, F. R.; Squire, J. P.; Ilin, A. V.; Bengtson, R. D.; Carter, M. D.; Goulding, R. H.

1999-01-01

The Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR) plasma source consists of a helical antenna, driven at frequencies of 4 to 19 MHz with powers up to 1 kW, in a magnetic field up to 3 kG. Helium is the current test gas, and future experiments with hydrogen are planned. Plasma density and temperature profiles were measured by a reciprocating Langmuir probe, and plasma flow profiles were measured with a reciprocating Mach probe. Both probes were located about 0.5 m downstream from the helical antenna. The plasma source operated in capacitive and inductive modes in addition to a helicon mode. During capacitive and inductive modes, densities were low and plasma flow was < 0.5 Cs. When the plasma operated in a helicon mode, the densities measured downstream from the source were higher [10(exp 12) / cubic cm ] and plasma flow along the magnetic field was of the order Mach 1. Details of the measurements will be shown.

Evaluation of power transfer efficiency for a high power inductively coupled radio-frequency hydrogen ion source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jain, P.; Recchia, M.; Cavenago, M.; Fantz, U.; Gaio, E.; Kraus, W.; Maistrello, A.; Veltri, P.

2018-04-01

Neutral beam injection (NBI) for plasma heating and current drive is necessary for International Thermonuclear Experimental reactor (ITER) tokamak. Due to its various advantages, a radio frequency (RF) driven plasma source type was selected as a reference ion source for the ITER heating NBI. The ITER relevant RF negative ion sources are inductively coupled (IC) devices whose operational working frequency has been chosen to be 1 MHz and are characterized by high RF power density (˜9.4 W cm-3) and low operational pressure (around 0.3 Pa). The RF field is produced by a coil in a cylindrical chamber leading to a plasma generation followed by its expansion inside the chamber. This paper recalls different concepts based on which a methodology is developed to evaluate the efficiency of the RF power transfer to hydrogen plasma. This efficiency is then analyzed as a function of the working frequency and in dependence of other operating source and plasma parameters. The study is applied to a high power IC RF hydrogen ion source which is similar to one simplified driver of the ELISE source (half the size of the ITER NBI source).

Mortality Benefit of Recombinant Human Interleukin-1 Receptor Antagonist for Sepsis Varies by Initial Interleukin-1 Receptor Antagonist Plasma Concentration.

PubMed

Meyer, Nuala J; Reilly, John P; Anderson, Brian J; Palakshappa, Jessica A; Jones, Tiffanie K; Dunn, Thomas G; Shashaty, Michael G S; Feng, Rui; Christie, Jason D; Opal, Steven M

2018-01-01

Plasma interleukin-1 beta may influence sepsis mortality, yet recombinant human interleukin-1 receptor antagonist did not reduce mortality in randomized trials. We tested for heterogeneity in the treatment effect of recombinant human interleukin-1 receptor antagonist by baseline plasma interleukin-1 beta or interleukin-1 receptor antagonist concentration. Retrospective subgroup analysis of randomized controlled trial. Multicenter North American and European clinical trial. Five hundred twenty-nine subjects with sepsis and hypotension or hypoperfusion, representing 59% of the original trial population. Random assignment of placebo or recombinant human interleukin-1 receptor antagonist × 72 hours. We measured prerandomization plasma interleukin-1 beta and interleukin-1 receptor antagonist and tested for statistical interaction between recombinant human interleukin-1 receptor antagonist treatment and baseline plasma interleukin-1 receptor antagonist or interleukin-1 beta concentration on 28-day mortality. There was significant heterogeneity in the effect of recombinant human interleukin-1 receptor antagonist treatment by plasma interleukin-1 receptor antagonist concentration whether plasma interleukin-1 receptor antagonist was divided into deciles (interaction p = 0.046) or dichotomized (interaction p = 0.028). Interaction remained present across different predicted mortality levels. Among subjects with baseline plasma interleukin-1 receptor antagonist above 2,071 pg/mL (n = 283), recombinant human interleukin-1 receptor antagonist therapy reduced adjusted mortality from 45.4% to 34.3% (adjusted risk difference, -0.12; 95% CI, -0.23 to -0.01), p = 0.044. Mortality in subjects with plasma interleukin-1 receptor antagonist below 2,071 pg/mL was not reduced by recombinant human interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (adjusted risk difference, +0.07; 95% CI, -0.04 to +0.17), p = 0.230. Interaction between plasma interleukin-1 beta concentration and recombinant human interleukin-1 receptor antagonist treatment was not statistically significant. We report a heterogeneous effect of recombinant human interleukin-1 receptor antagonist on 28-day sepsis mortality that is potentially predictable by plasma interleukin-1 receptor antagonist in one trial. A precision clinical trial of recombinant human interleukin-1 receptor antagonist targeted to septic patients with high plasma interleukin-1 receptor antagonist may be worthy of consideration.

Gamma source for active interrogation

DOEpatents

Leung, Ka-Ngo; Lou, Tak Pui; Barletta, William A.

2012-10-02

A cylindrical gamma generator includes a coaxial RF-driven plasma ion source and target. A hydrogen plasma is produced by RF excitation in a cylindrical plasma ion generator using an RF antenna. A cylindrical gamma generating target is coaxial with the ion generator, separated by plasma and extraction electrodes which has many openings. The plasma generator emanates ions radially over 360.degree. and the cylindrical target is thus irradiated by ions over its entire circumference. The plasma generator and target may be as long as desired.

Gamma source for active interrogation

DOEpatents

Leung, Ka-Ngo [Hercules, CA; Lou, Tak Pui [Berkeley, CA; Barletta, William A [Oakland, CA

2009-09-29

A cylindrical gamma generator includes a coaxial RF-driven plasma ion source and target. A hydrogen plasma is produced by RF excitation in a cylindrical plasma ion generator using an RF antenna. A cylindrical gamma generating target is coaxial with the ion generator, separated by plasma and extraction electrodes which has many openings. The plasma generator emanates ions radially over 360.degree. and the cylindrical target is thus irradiated by ions over its entire circumference. The plasma generator and target may be as long as desired.

21 CFR 640.91 - Processing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) § 640.91 Processing. (a) Date... °C or colder. (e) Heat treatment. Heating of the final containers of Plasma Protein Fraction (Human... concentration of the product. (g) Incubation. All final containers of Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) shall be...

21 CFR 640.91 - Processing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) § 640.91 Processing. (a) Date... °C or colder. (e) Heat treatment. Heating of the final containers of Plasma Protein Fraction (Human... concentration of the product. (g) Incubation. All final containers of Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) shall be...

21 CFR 640.91 - Processing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) § 640.91 Processing. (a) Date... °C or colder. (e) Heat treatment. Heating of the final containers of Plasma Protein Fraction (Human... concentration of the product. (g) Incubation. All final containers of Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) shall be...

21 CFR 640.91 - Processing.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... STANDARDS FOR HUMAN BLOOD AND BLOOD PRODUCTS Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) § 640.91 Processing. (a) Date... °C or colder. (e) Heat treatment. Heating of the final containers of Plasma Protein Fraction (Human... concentration of the product. (g) Incubation. All final containers of Plasma Protein Fraction (Human) shall be...

A new flexible DBD device for treating infected wounds: in vitro and ex vivo evaluation and comparison with a RF argon plasma jet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boekema, B. K. H. L.; Vlig, M.; Guijt, D.; Hijnen, K.; Hofmann, S.; Smits, P.; Sobota, A.; van Veldhuizen, E. M.; Bruggeman, P.; Middelkoop, E.

2016-02-01

Cold plasma has been shown to provide a promising alternative antimicrobial treatment for wound healing. We developed and tested a flexible surface dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) and compared it to an argon gas based plasma jet operated remotely with a distance between plasma plume and sample of 8 mm. Tests were conducted using different models: on cultured cells, on ex vivo human skin and on bacteria (Pseudomonas aeruginosa) (on agar, in suspension, in collagen/elastin matrix or on ex vivo human skin), allowing us to directly compare bactericidal with safety aspects under identical conditions. Both plasma devices were highly efficient when used on bacteria in non-buffered solutions, but DBD was faster in reaching the maximum bacterial reduction. Treatment of bacteria on intact skin with DBD resulted in up to 6 log reductions in 3 min. The jet was far less efficient on intact skin. Even after 8 min treatment no more than 2 log reductions were obtained with the jet. Treatment of bacteria in burn wound models with DBD for 6 min resulted in a 4.5 log reduction. Even when using DBD for 6 min on infected burn wound models with colonizing or biofilm phase bacteria, the log reductions were 3.8 or 3.2 respectively. DBD plasma treatment for 6 min did not affect fibroblast viability, whereas a treatment for 8 min was detrimental. Similarly, treatment with DBD or plasma jet for 6 min did also not affect the metabolic activity of skin biopsies. After treatment for 8 min with DBD or plasma jet, 78% or 60% of activity in skin biopsies remained, respectively. Multiple treatments of in vitro burn wound models with surface DBD for 6 min or with plasma jet for 8 min did not affect re-epithelialization. With the flexible surface DBD plasma strip we were able to quickly inactivate large numbers of bacteria on and in skin. Under the same conditions, viability of skin cells or re-epithelialization was not affected. The DBD source has potential for treating larger wound areas.

Study on monatomic fraction improvement with alumina layer on metal electrode in hydrogen plasma ion sourcea)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jung, Bong-Ki; Chung, Kyoung-Jae; Dang, Jeong-Jeung; Hwang, Y. S.

2012-02-01

A high monatomic beam fraction is an important factor in a hydrogen ion source to increase the application efficiency. The monatomic fraction of hydrogen plasmas with different plasma electrode materials is measured in a helicon plasma ion source, and aluminum shows the highest value compared to that with the other metals such as copper and molybdenum. Formation of an aluminum oxide layer on the aluminum electrode is determined by XPS analysis, and the alumina layer is verified as the high monatomic fraction. Both experiments and numerical simulations conclude that a low surface recombination coefficient of the alumina layer on the plasma electrode is one of the most important parameters for increasing the monatomic fraction in hydrogen plasma ion sources.

Maternal Blood, Plasma, and Breast Milk Lead: Lactational Transfer and Contribution to Infant Exposure

PubMed Central

Roy, Ananya; Amarasiriwardena, Chitra J.; Smith, Donald; Lupoli, Nicola; Mercado-García, Adriana; Lamadrid-Figueroa, Hector; Tellez-Rojo, Martha Maria; Hu, Howard; Hernández-Avila, Mauricio

2013-01-01

Background: Human milk is a potential source of lead exposure. Yet lactational transfer of lead from maternal blood into breast milk and its contribution to infant lead burden remains poorly understood. Objectives: We explored the dose–response relationships between maternal blood, plasma, and breast milk to better understand lactational transfer of lead from blood and plasma into milk and, ultimately, to the breastfeeding infant. Methods: We measured lead in 81 maternal blood, plasma, and breast milk samples at 1 month postpartum and in 60 infant blood samples at 3 months of age. Milk-to-plasma (M/P) lead ratios were calculated. Multivariate linear, piecewise, and generalized additive models were used to examine dose–response relationships between blood, plasma, and milk lead levels. Results: Maternal lead levels (mean ± SD) were as follows: blood: 7.7 ± 4.0 μg/dL; plasma: 0.1 ± 0.1 μg/L; milk: 0.8 ± 0.7 μg/L. The average M/P lead ratio was 7.7 (range, 0.6–39.8) with 97% of the ratios being > 1. The dose–response relationship between plasma lead and M/P ratio was nonlinear (empirical distribution function = 6.5, p = 0.0006) with the M/P ratio decreasing by 16.6 and 0.6 per 0.1 μg/L of plasma lead, respectively, below and above 0.1 μg/L plasma lead. Infant blood lead level (3.4 ± 2.2 μg/dL) increased by 1.8 μg/dL per 1 μg/L milk lead (p < 0.0001, R2 = 0.3). Conclusions: The M/P ratio for lead in humans is substantially higher than previously reported, and transfer of lead from plasma to milk may be higher at lower levels of plasma lead. Breast milk is an important determinant of lead burden among breastfeeding infants. Citation: Ettinger AS, Roy A, Amarasiriwardena CJ, Smith DR, Lupoli N, Mercado-García A, Lamadrid-Figueroa H, Tellez-Rojo MM, Hu H, Hernández-Avila M. 2014. Maternal blood, plasma, and breast milk lead: lactational transfer and contribution to infant exposure. Environ Health Perspect 122:87–92; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1307187 PMID:24184948

Transport of a helicon plasma by a convergent magnetic field for high speed and compact plasma etching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takahashi, Kazunori; Motomura, Taisei; Ando, Akira; Kasashima, Yuji; Kikunaga, Kazuya; Uesugi, Fumihiko; Hara, Shiro

2014-10-01

A high density argon plasma produced in a compact helicon source is transported by a convergent magnetic field to the central region of a substrate located downstream of the source. The magnetic field converging near the source exit is applied by a solenoid and further converged by installing a permanent magnet (PM) behind the substrate, which is located downstream of the source exit. Then a higher plasma density above 5 × 1012 cm-3 can be obtained in 0.2 Pa argon near the substrate, compared with the case without the PM. As no noticeable changes in the radially integrated density near the substrate and the power transfer efficiency are detected when testing the source with and without the PM, it can be deduced that the convergent field provided by the PM plays a role in constricting the plasma rather than in improving the plasma production. Furthermore it is applied to physical ion etching of silicon and aluminum substrates; then high etching rates of 6.5 µm min-1 and 8 µm min-1 are obtained, respectively.

Selective ion source

DOEpatents

Leung, K.N.

1996-05-14

A ion source is described wherein selected ions maybe extracted to the exclusion of unwanted ion species of higher ionization potential. Also described is a method of producing selected ions from a compound, such as P{sup +} from PH{sub 3}. The invention comprises a plasma chamber, an electron source, a means for introducing a gas to be ionized by electrons from the electron source, means for limiting electron energy from the electron source to a value between the ionization energy of the selected ion species and the greater ionization energy of an unwanted ion specie, and means for extracting the target ion specie from the plasma chamber. In one embodiment, the electrons are generated in a plasma cathode chamber immediately adjacent to the plasma chamber. A small extractor draws the electrons from the plasma cathode chamber into the relatively positive plasma chamber. The energy of the electrons extracted in this manner is easily controlled. The invention is particularly useful for doping silicon with P{sup +}, As{sup +}, and B{sup +} without the problematic presence of hydrogen, helium, water, or carbon oxide ions. Doped silicon is important for manufacture of semiconductors and semiconductor devices. 6 figs.

Selective ion source

DOEpatents

Leung, Ka-Ngo

1996-01-01

A ion source is described wherein selected ions maybe extracted to the exclusion of unwanted ion species of higher ionization potential. Also described is a method of producing selected ions from a compound, such as P.sup.+ from PH.sub.3. The invention comprises a plasma chamber, an electron source, a means for introducing a gas to be ionized by electrons from the electron source, means for limiting electron energy from the electron source to a value between the ionization energy of the selected ion species and the greater ionization energy of an unwanted ion specie, and means for extracting the target ion specie from the plasma chamber. In one embodiment, the electrons are generated in a plasma cathode chamber immediately adjacent to the plasma chamber. A small extractor draws the electrons from the plasma cathode chamber into the relatively positive plasma chamber. The energy of the electrons extracted in this manner is easily controlled. The invention is particularly useful for doping silicon with P.sup.+, AS.sup.+, and B.sup.+ without the problematic presence of hydrogen, helium, water, or carbon oxide ions. Doped silicon is important for manufacture of semiconductors and semiconductor devices.

The enzymatic hydrolysis of imidazoleacryloylcholine (murexine) and imidazolepropionylcholine (dihydromurexine) by various cholinesterases

PubMed Central

Grelis, M. E.; Tabachnick, I. I. A.

1957-01-01

Several choline esters, including the imidazoleacryloyl and imidazolepropionyl compounds, have been hydrolysed by cholinesterases from various sources. The imidazolepropionyl ester was metabolized by cholinesterases obtained from human plasma, ox spleen, ox serum, and guinea-pig liver, but not by rat liver or bovine red cell cholinesterase. It is suggested the imidazolepropionylcholine or a closely related ester might be the natural substrate for “non-specific” cholinesterase. PMID:13460237

Polar Plasma at Ganymede: Ionospheric outflow and discovery of the plasma sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Collinson, G.; Paterson, W.; Dorelli, J.; Glocer, A.; Sarantos, M.; Wilson, R. J.; Bard, C.

2017-12-01

On the 27th of June 1996, the NASA Galileo spacecraft made humanities first flyby of Jupiter's largest moon, Ganymede, discovering that it is unique to science in being the only moon known to possess an internally generated magnetic dynamo field. Although Galileo carried a plasma spectrometer, the Plasma Subsystem (PLS), converting its highly complex raw data stream into meaningful plasma moments (density, temperature, velocity) is extremely challenging, and was only ever performed for the second (out of six) Ganymede flybys. Resurrecting the original Galileo PLS data analysis software, we processed the raw PLS data from G01, and for the first time present the properties of plasmas encountered. Dense, cold ions were observed outflowing from the moon's north pole (presumed to be dominated by H+ from the icy surface), with more diffuse, warmer field-aligned outflows in the lobes. Dropouts in plasma density combined with velocity perturbations either side of this suggest that Galileo briefly crossed the cusps onto closed magnetic field lines. PLS observations show that upon entry into the magnetosphere, Galileo crossed through the plasma sheet, observing plasma flows consistent with reconnection-driven convection, highly energized 105 eV ions, and a reversal in the magnetic field. The densities of plasmas flowing upwards from Ganymede's ionosphere were higher on open "lobe" field lines than on closed field lines, suggesting that the ionospheric source of these plasmas may be denser at the poles, there may be additional acceleration mechanisms at play, or the balance of ions were outside the energy range of PLS.

Determination of lansoprazole in human plasma by rapid resolution liquid chromatography-electrospray tandem mass spectrometry: application to a bioequivalence study on Chinese volunteers.

PubMed

Wu, Guo-Lan; Zhou, Hui-Li; Shentu, Jian-Zhong; He, Qiao-Jun; Yang, Bo

2008-12-15

A simple, sensitive and rapid LC/MS/MS method was developed for the quantification of lansoprazole in human plasma. After a simple sample preparation procedure by one-step protein precipitation with acetonitrile, lansoprazole and the internal standard bicalutamide were chromatographed on a Zorbax SB-C(18) (3.0 mm x 150 mm, 3.5 microm, Agilent) column with the mobile phase consisted of methanol-water (70:30, v/v, containing 5 mM ammonium formate, pH was adjusted to 7.85 by 1% ammonia solution). Detection was performed on a triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry by multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode via negative eletrospray ionization source (ESI(-)). The lower limit of quantification was 5.5 ng/mL, and the assay exhibited a linear range of 5.5-2200.0 ng/mL. The validated method was successfully applied to investigate the bioequivalence between two kinds of preparation (test vs. reference product) in twenty-eight healthy male Chinese volunteers.

The study of helicon plasma source

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Miao Tingting; Shang Yong; Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049

2010-02-15

Helicon plasma source is known as efficient generator of uniform and high density plasma. A helicon plasma source was developed for investigation of plasma neutralization and plasma lens in the Institute of Modern Physics in China. In this paper, the characteristics of helicon plasma have been studied by using Langmuir four-probe and a high argon plasma density up to 3.9x10{sup 13} cm{sup -3} have been achieved with the Nagoya type III antenna at the conditions of the magnetic intensity of 200 G, working gas pressure of 2.8x10{sup -3} Pa, and rf power of 1200 W with a frequency of 27.12more » MHz. In the experiment, the important phenomena have been found: for a given magnetic induction intensity, the plasma density became greater with the increase in rf power and tended to saturation, and the helicon mode appeared at the rf power between 200 and 400 W.« less

A 1D ion species model for an RF driven negative ion source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Turner, I.; Holmes, A. J. T.

2017-08-01

A one-dimensional model for an RF driven negative ion source has been developed based on an inductive discharge. The RF source differs from traditional filament and arc ion sources because there are no primary electrons present, and is simply composed of an antenna region (driver) and a main plasma discharge region. However the model does still make use of the classical plasma transport equations for particle energy and flow, which have previously worked well for modelling DC driven sources. The model has been developed primarily to model the Small Negative Ion Facility (SNIF) ion source at CCFE, but may be easily adapted to model other RF sources. Currently the model considers the hydrogen ion species, and provides a detailed description of the plasma parameters along the source axis, i.e. plasma temperature, density and potential, as well as current densities and species fluxes. The inputs to the model are currently the RF power, the magnetic filter field and the source gas pressure. Results from the model are presented and where possible compared to existing experimental data from SNIF, with varying RF power, source pressure.

Equivalent circuit of radio frequency-plasma with the transformer model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nishida, K.; Mochizuki, S.; Ohta, M.; Yasumoto, M.; Lettry, J.; Mattei, S.; Hatayama, A.

2014-02-01

LINAC4 H- source is radio frequency (RF) driven type source. In the RF system, it is required to match the load impedance, which includes H- source, to that of final amplifier. We model RF plasma inside the H- source as circuit elements using transformer model so that characteristics of the load impedance become calculable. It has been shown that the modeling based on the transformer model works well to predict the resistance and inductance of the plasma.

Dynamic Response of a Magnetized Plasma to AN External Source: Application to Space and Solid State Plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Huai-Bei

This dissertation examines the dynamic response of a magnetoplasma to an external time-dependent current source. To achieve this goal a new method which combines analytic and numerical techniques to study the dynamic response of a 3-D magnetoplasma to a time-dependent current source imposed across the magnetic field was developed. The set of the cold electron and/or ion plasma equations and Maxwell's equations are first solved analytically in (k, omega)^ace; inverse Laplace and 3 -D complex Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) techniques are subsequently used to numerically transform the radiation fields and plasma currents from the (k, omega) ^ace to the (r, t) space. The dynamic responses of the electron plasma and of the compensated two-component plasma to external current sources are studied separately. The results show that the electron plasma responds to a time -varying current source imposed across the magnetic field by exciting whistler/helicon waves and forming of an expanding local current loop, induced by field aligned plasma currents. The current loop consists of two anti-parallel field-aligned current channels concentrated at the ends of the imposed current and a cross-field current region connecting these channels. The latter is driven by an electron Hall drift. A compensated two-component plasma responds to the same current source as following: (a) For slow time scales tau > Omega_sp{i}{-1} , it generates Alfven waves and forms a non-local current loop in which the ion polarization currents dominate the cross-field current; (b) For fast time scales tau < Omega_sp{i}{-1} , the dynamic response of the compensated two-component plasma is the same as that of the electron plasma. The characteristics of the current closure region are determined by the background plasma density, the magnetic field and the time scale of the current source. This study has applications to a diverse range of space and solid state plasma problems. These problems include current closure in emf inducing tethered satellite systems (TSS), generation of ELF/VLF waves by ionospheric heating, current closure and quasineutrality in thin magnetopause transitions, and short electromagnetic pulse generation in solid state plasmas. The cross-field current in TSS builds up on a time scale corresponding to the whistler waves and results in local current closure. Amplitude modulated HF ionospheric heating generates ELF/VLF waves by forming a horizontal magnetic dipole. The dipole is formed by the current closure in the modified region. For thin transition the time-dependent cross-field polarization field at the magnetopause could be neutralized by the formation of field aligned current loops that close by a cross-field electron Hall current. A moving current source in a solid state plasma results in microwave emission if the speed of the source exceeds the local phase velocity of the helicon or Alfven waves. Detailed analysis of the above problems is presented in the thesis.

Plasma formed ion beam projection lithography system

DOEpatents

Leung, Ka-Ngo; Lee, Yung-Hee Yvette; Ngo, Vinh; Zahir, Nastaran

2002-01-01

A plasma-formed ion-beam projection lithography (IPL) system eliminates the acceleration stage between the ion source and stencil mask of a conventional IPL system. Instead a much thicker mask is used as a beam forming or extraction electrode, positioned next to the plasma in the ion source. Thus the entire beam forming electrode or mask is illuminated uniformly with the source plasma. The extracted beam passes through an acceleration and reduction stage onto the resist coated wafer. Low energy ions, about 30 eV, pass through the mask, minimizing heating, scattering, and sputtering.

Determination of aniracetam's main metabolite, N-anisoyl-GABA, in human plasma by LC-MS/MS and its application to a pharmacokinetic study.

PubMed

Cai, Shuang; Wang, Lei

2012-05-15

A simple and rapid high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS) method has been developed and validated for the determination of 4-p-anisamidobutyric acid (ABA; or N-anysoyl-γ-aminobutiryc acid, N-anisoyl-GABA), a major active metabolite of aniracetam, in human plasma. After protein precipitation of plasma sample with methanol, ABA and the internal standard lisinopril were separated on a Venusil ASB C₁₈ column at 25 °C. The mobile phase consisted of methanol-ammonium acetate (10 mmol/L) (30:70, v/v). The detection was performed on a triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer with an ESI source in negative ion mode. Multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) using the precursor→product ion combinations of m/z 235.8→m/z 106.6, and m/z 403.8→m/z 113.6 was used to quantify ABA and lisinopril, respectively. This is the first LC-MS/MS method for ABA with advantages of short analysis time (4.5 min per sample run) and high selectivity attributable to the MRM detection and optimized HPLC conditions. The response was linear in a concentration range of 0.0485-19.4 μg/mL in plasma. The extraction recovery of ABA was between 89.1% and 100.7%. The precision (RSD) and accuracy (RE) of the method were evaluated to be within 7.3% and from 2.5% to 6.9%. The validated method has been applied to the pharmacokinetic study after a single oral administration of aniracetam dispersible tablets to human beings. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Human skeletal muscle ascorbate is highly responsive to changes in vitamin C intake and plasma concentrations123

PubMed Central

Bozonet, Stephanie M; Pullar, Juliet M; Simcock, Jeremy W; Vissers, Margreet CM

2013-01-01

Background: Vitamin C (ascorbate) is likely to be essential for skeletal muscle structure and function via its role as an enzyme cofactor for collagen and carnitine biosynthesis. Vitamin C may also protect these metabolically active cells from oxidative stress. Objective: We investigated the bioavailability of vitamin C to human skeletal muscle in relation to dietary intake and plasma concentrations and compared this relation with ascorbate uptake by leukocytes. Design: Thirty-six nonsmoking men were randomly assigned to receive 6 wk of 0.5 or 2 kiwifruit/d, an outstanding dietary source of vitamin C. Fasting blood samples were drawn weekly, and 24-h urine and leukocyte samples were collected before intervention, after intervention, and after washout. Needle biopsies of skeletal muscle (vastus lateralis) were carried out before and after intervention. Results: Baseline vastus lateralis ascorbate concentrations were ∼16 nmol/g tissue. After intervention with 0.5 or 2 kiwifruit/d, these concentrations increased ∼3.5-fold to 53 and 61 nmol/g, respectively. There was no significant difference between the responses of the 2 groups. Mononuclear cell and neutrophil ascorbate concentrations increased only ∼1.5- and ∼2-fold, respectively. Muscle ascorbate concentrations were highly correlated (P < 0.001) with dietary intake (R = 0.61) and plasma concentrations (R = 0.75) in the range from 5 to 80 μmol/L. Conclusions: Human skeletal muscle is highly responsive to vitamin C intake and plasma concentrations and exhibits a greater relative uptake of ascorbate than leukocytes. Thus, muscle appears to comprise a relatively labile pool of ascorbate and is likely to be prone to ascorbate depletion with inadequate dietary intake. This trial was registered at the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (www.anzctr.org.au) as ACTRN12611000162910. PMID:23446899

Human skeletal muscle ascorbate is highly responsive to changes in vitamin C intake and plasma concentrations.

PubMed

Carr, Anitra C; Bozonet, Stephanie M; Pullar, Juliet M; Simcock, Jeremy W; Vissers, Margreet Cm

2013-04-01

Vitamin C (ascorbate) is likely to be essential for skeletal muscle structure and function via its role as an enzyme cofactor for collagen and carnitine biosynthesis. Vitamin C may also protect these metabolically active cells from oxidative stress. We investigated the bioavailability of vitamin C to human skeletal muscle in relation to dietary intake and plasma concentrations and compared this relation with ascorbate uptake by leukocytes. Thirty-six nonsmoking men were randomly assigned to receive 6 wk of 0.5 or 2 kiwifruit/d, an outstanding dietary source of vitamin C. Fasting blood samples were drawn weekly, and 24-h urine and leukocyte samples were collected before intervention, after intervention, and after washout. Needle biopsies of skeletal muscle (vastus lateralis) were carried out before and after intervention. Baseline vastus lateralis ascorbate concentrations were ~16 nmol/g tissue. After intervention with 0.5 or 2 kiwifruit/d, these concentrations increased ~3.5-fold to 53 and 61 nmol/g, respectively. There was no significant difference between the responses of the 2 groups. Mononuclear cell and neutrophil ascorbate concentrations increased only ~1.5- and ~2-fold, respectively. Muscle ascorbate concentrations were highly correlated (P < 0.001) with dietary intake (R = 0.61) and plasma concentrations (R = 0.75) in the range from 5 to 80 μmol/L. Human skeletal muscle is highly responsive to vitamin C intake and plasma concentrations and exhibits a greater relative uptake of ascorbate than leukocytes. Thus, muscle appears to comprise a relatively labile pool of ascorbate and is likely to be prone to ascorbate depletion with inadequate dietary intake. This trial was registered at the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (www.anzctr.org.au) as ACTRN12611000162910.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Koivisto, H., E-mail: hannu.koivisto@phys.jyu.fi; Kalvas, T.; Tarvainen, O.

Several ion source related research and development projects are in progress at the Department of Physics, University of Jyväskylä (JYFL). The work can be divided into investigation of the ion source plasma and development of ion sources, ion beams, and diagnostics. The investigation covers the Electron Cyclotron Resonance Ion Source (ECRIS) plasma instabilities, vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) and visible light emission, photon induced electron emission, and the development of plasma diagnostics. The ion source development covers the work performed for radiofrequency-driven negative ion source, RADIS, beam line upgrade of the JYFL 14 GHz ECRIS, and the development of a new room-temperature-magnetmore » 18 GHz ECRIS, HIISI.« less

Safety of nonthermal atmospheric pressure plasma for tooth bleaching evaluated in terms of microhardness and mineral content

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nam, S. H.; Hong, J. W.; Lee, H. J.; Jeon, Y. C.; Kim, G. C.

2017-08-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of bleaching with nonthermal atmospheric pressure plasma and 15% hydrogen peroxide (HP) or 15% carbamide peroxide (CP). Sixty human enamel and dentin slabs were randomly assigned to six groups as follows: Group 1 was a control group and did not receive any treatment; Group 2 was exposed only to plasma, as a negative control; Group 3 was treated with 15% HP; Group 4 was treated with 15% HP plus plasma; Group 5 was treated with 15% CP alone; and Group 6 was treated with 15% CP plus plasma during 30 min bleaching treatments. A microhardness measurement was conducted according to a microhardness tester. The amount of calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), chloride (Cl), sodium (Na), magnesium (Mg), and zinc (Zn) in the enamel and dentin was quantified with an electron probe microanalyzer (EPMA). The data were analyzed by using the Student’s t test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), complemented by Tukey’s test. The statistical analysis did not show any significant differences in microhardness values and six mineral contents in all groups (p  >  0.05). Therefore, we believe that the application of nonthermal atmospheric pressure plasma is a safe energy source for tooth bleaching.

Slit shaped microwave induced atmospheric pressure plasma based on a parallel plate transmission line resonator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kang, S. K.; Seo, Y. S.; Lee, H. Wk; Aman-ur-Rehman; Kim, G. C.; Lee, J. K.

2011-11-01

A new type of microwave-excited atmospheric pressure plasma source, based on the principle of parallel plate transmission line resonator, is developed for the treatment of large areas in biomedical applications such as skin treatment and wound healing. A stable plasma of 20 mm width is sustained by a small microwave power source operated at a frequency of 700 MHz and a gas flow rate of 0.9 slm. Plasma impedance and plasma density of this plasma source are estimated by fitting the calculated reflection coefficient to the measured one. The estimated plasma impedance shows a decreasing trend while estimated plasma density shows an increasing trend with the increase in the input power. Plasma uniformity is confirmed by temperature and optical emission distribution measurements. Plasma temperature is sustained at less than 40 °C and abundant amounts of reactive species, which are important agents for bacteria inactivation, are detected over the entire plasma region. Large area treatment ability of this newly developed device is verified through bacteria inactivation experiment using E. coli. Sterilization experiment shows a large bacterial killing mark of 25 mm for a plasma treatment time of 10 s.

Three-dimensional modeling of a negative ion source with a magnetic filter: impact of biasing the plasma electrode on the plasma asymmetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fubiani, G.; Boeuf, J. P.

2015-10-01

The effect on the plasma characteristics of biasing positively the plasma electrode (PE) in negative ion sources with a magnetic filter is analysed using a 3D particle-in-cell model with Monte-Carlo collisions (PIC-MCC). We specialize to the one driver (i.e. one inductively coupled radio-frequency discharge) BATMAN negative ion source and the 4-drivers (large volume) ELISE device. Both are ITER prototype high power tandem-type negative ion sources developed for the neutral beam injector (NBI) system. The plasma is generated in the driver and diffuses inside the second chamber which is magnetized. Asymmetric plasma profiles originate from the formation of an electric field transverse to the electron current flowing through the magnetic filter (Hall effect). The model shows that the importance of the asymmetry increases with the PE bias potential, i.e. with the electron flow from the driver to the extraction region and depends on the shape of the magnetic filter field. We find that although the plasma density and potential profiles may be more or less asymmetric depending on the filter field configuration, the electron current to the plasma grid is always strongly asymmetric.

RF power absorption by plasma of low pressure low power inductive discharge located in the external magnetic field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kralkina, E. A.; Rukhadze, A. A.; Nekliudova, P. A.; Pavlov, V. B.; Petrov, A. K.; Vavilin, K. V.

2018-03-01

Present paper is aimed to reveal experimentally and theoretically the influence of magnetic field strength, antenna shape, pressure, operating frequency and geometrical size of plasma sources on the ability of plasma to absorb the RF power characterized by the equivalent plasma resistance for the case of low pressure RF inductive discharge located in the external magnetic field. The distinguishing feature of the present paper is the consideration of the antennas that generate not only current but charge on the external surface of plasma sources. It is shown that in the limited plasma source two linked waves can be excited. In case of antennas generating only azimuthal current the waves can be attributed as helicon and TG waves. In the case of an antenna with the longitudinal current there is a surface charge on the side surface of the plasma source, which gives rise to a significant increase of the longitudinal and radial components of the RF electric field as compared with the case of the azimuthal antenna current.

High-current plasma contactor neutralizer system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Beattie, J. R.; Williamson, W. S.; Matossian, J. N.; Vourgourakis, E. J.; Burch, J. L.

1989-01-01

A plasma-contactor neutralizer system is described, for the stabilizing the Orbiter's potential during flights of the Atmospheric Laboratory for Applications and Science missions. The plasma contactor neutralizer will include a Xe plasma source that can provide steady-state ion-emission currents of up to 1.5 A. The Orbiter's potential will be maintained near that of the surrounding space plasma during electron-beam accelerator firings through a combination of ion emission from the Xe plasma source and electron collection from the ambient space plasma. Configuration diagrams and block diagrams are presented along with the performance characteristics of the system.

COASTING ARC ION SOURCE

DOEpatents

Foster, J.S. Jr.

1957-09-10

An improved ion source is described and in particular a source in which the ions are efficiently removed. The plasma is generated in a tubular amode structure by the oscillation of electrons in an axial magnetic field, as in the Phillips Ion Gage. The novel aspect of the source is the expansion of the plasma as it leaves the anode structure, so as to reduce the ion density at the axis of the anode and present a uniform area of plasma to an extraction grid. The structure utilized in the present patent to expand the plasma comprises flange members of high permeability at the exitgrid end of the amode to diverge the magnetic field adjacent the exit.

Hypericum perforatum: a 'modern' herbal antidepressant: pharmacokinetics of active ingredients.

PubMed

Wurglics, Mario; Schubert-Zsilavecz, Manfred

2006-01-01

Hypericum perforatum (St John's Wort [SJW]) counts among the most favourite herbal drugs, and is the only herbal alternative to classic synthetic antidepressants in the therapy of mild to moderate depression. Several clinical studies have been conducted to verify the effectiveness of ethanolic or methanolic extracts of SJW. Alcoholic SJW extracts are a mixture of substances with widely varying physical and chemical properties and activities. Hyperforin, a phloroglucinol derivative, is the main source of pharmacological effects caused by the consumption of alcoholic extracts of SJW in the therapy of depression. However, several studies indicate that flavone derivatives, e.g. rutin, and also the naphthodianthrones hypericin and pseudohypericin, take part in the antidepressant efficacy. In contrast to the amount of documentation concerning clinical efficacy, oral bioavailability and pharmacokinetic data about the active components are rather scarce. The hyperforin plasma concentration in humans was investigated in a small number of studies. The results of these studies indicate a relevant plasma concentration, comparable with that used in in vitro tests. Furthermore, hyperforin is the only ingredient of H. perforatum that could be determined in the brain of rodents after oral administration of alcoholic extracts. The plasma concentrations of the hypericins were, compared with hyperforin, only one-tenth and, until now, the hypericins could not be found in the brain after oral administration of alcoholic H. perforatum extracts or pure hypericin. Until now, the pharmacokinetic profile of the flavonoids in humans after oral administration of an alcoholic H. perforatum extract has been investigated in only one study. More data are available for rutin and the aglycone quercetin after administration of pure substances or other flavonoid sources.

First operation and effect of a new tandem-type ion source based on electron cyclotron resonance

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kato, Yushi, E-mail: kato@eei.eng.osaka-u.ac.jp; Kimura, Daiju; Yano, Keisuke

A new tandem type source has been constructed on the basis of electron cyclotron resonance plasma for producing synthesized ion beams in Osaka University. Magnetic field in the first stage consists of all permanent magnets, i.e., cylindrically comb shaped one, and that of the second stage consists of a pair of mirror coil, a supplemental coil and the octupole magnets. Both stage plasmas can be individually operated, and produced ions in which is energy controlled by large bore extractor also can be transported from the first to the second stage. We investigate the basic operation and effects of the tandemmore » type electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS). Analysis of ion beams and investigation of plasma parameters are conducted on produced plasmas in dual plasmas operation as well as each single operation. We describe construction and initial experimental results of the new tandem type ion source based on ECRIS with wide operation window for aiming at producing synthesized ion beams as this new source can be a universal source in future.« less

The State of the Human Proteome in 2013 as viewed through PeptideAtlas: Comparing the Kidney, Urine, and Plasma Proteomes for the Biology and Disease-driven Human Proteome Project

PubMed Central

Farrah, Terry; Deutsch, Eric W.; Omenn, Gilbert S.; Sun, Zhi; Watts, Julian D.; Yamamoto, Tadashi; Shteynberg, David; Harris, Micheleen M.; Moritz, Robert L.

2014-01-01

The kidney, urine, and plasma proteomes are intimately related: proteins and metabolic waste products are filtered from the plasma by the kidney and excreted via the urine, while kidney proteins may be secreted into the circulation or released into the urine. Shotgun proteomics datasets derived from human kidney, urine, and plasma samples were collated and processed using a uniform software pipeline, and relative protein abundances were estimated by spectral counting. The resulting PeptideAtlas builds yielded 4005, 2491, and 3553 nonredundant proteins at 1% FDR for the kidney, urine, and plasma proteomes, respectively—for kidney and plasma, the largest high-confidence protein sets to date. The same pipeline applied to all available human data yielded a 2013 Human PeptideAtlas build containing 12,644 nonredundant proteins and at least one peptide for each of ~14,000 Swiss-Prot entries, an increase over 2012 of ~7.5% of the predicted human proteome. We demonstrate that abundances are correlated between plasma and urine, examine the most abundant urine proteins not derived from either plasma or kidney, and consider the biomarker potential of proteins associated with renal decline. This analysis forms part of the Biology and Disease-driven Human Proteome Project (B/D-HPP) and a contribution to the Chromosome-centric Human Proteome Project (C-HPP) special issue. PMID:24261998

Characteristics of the Plasma Source for Ground Ionosphere Simulation Surveyed by Disk-Type Langmuir Probe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ryu, Kwangsun; Lee, Junchan; Kim, Songoo; Chung, Taejin; Shin, Goo-Hwan; Cha, Wonho; Min, Kyoungwook; Kim, Vitaly P.

2017-12-01

A space plasma facility has been operated with a back-diffusion-type plasma source installed in a mid-sized vacuum chamber with a diameter of 1.5 m located in Satellite Technology Research Center (SaTReC), Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). To generate plasma with a temperature and density similar to the ionospheric plasma, nickel wires coated with carbonate solution were used as filaments that emit thermal electrons, and the accelerated thermal electrons emitted from the heated wires collide with the neutral gas to form plasma inside the chamber. By using a disk-type Langmuir probe installed inside the vacuum chamber, the generation of plasma similar to the space environment was validated. The characteristics of the plasma according to the grid and plate anode voltages were investigated. The grid voltage of the plasma source is realized as a suitable parameter for manipulating the electron density, while the plate voltage is suitable for adjusting the electron temperature. A simple physical model based on the collision cross-section of electron impact on nitrogen molecule was established to explain the plasma generation mechanism.

Monitoring of conditions inside gas aggregation cluster source during production of Ti/TiOx nanoparticles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kousal, J.; Kolpaková, A.; Shelemin, A.; Kudrna, P.; Tichý, M.; Kylián, O.; Hanuš, J.; Choukourov, A.; Biederman, H.

2017-10-01

Gas aggregation sources are nowadays rather widely used in the research community for producing nanoparticles. However, the direct diagnostics of conditions inside the source are relatively scarce. In this work, we focused on monitoring the plasma parameters and the composition of the gas during the production of the TiOx nanoparticles. We studied the role of oxygen in the aggregation process and the influence of the presence of the particles on the plasma. The construction of the source allowed us to make a 2D map of the plasma parameters inside the source.

Glucose responsive insulin production from human embryonic germ (EG) cell derivatives.

PubMed

Clark, Gregory O; Yochem, Robert L; Axelman, Joyce; Sheets, Timothy P; Kaczorowski, David J; Shamblott, Michael J

2007-05-11

Type 1 diabetes mellitus subjects millions to a daily burden of disease management, life threatening hypoglycemia and long-term complications such as retinopathy, nephropathy, heart disease, and stroke. Cell transplantation therapies providing a glucose-regulated supply of insulin have been implemented clinically, but are limited by safety, efficacy and supply considerations. Stem cells promise a plentiful and flexible source of cells for transplantation therapies. Here, we show that cells derived from human embryonic germ (EG) cells express markers of definitive endoderm, pancreatic and beta-cell development, glucose sensing, and production of mature insulin. These cells integrate functions necessary for glucose responsive regulation of preproinsulin mRNA and expression of insulin C-peptide in vitro. Following transplantation into mice, cells become insulin and C-peptide immunoreactive and produce plasma C-peptide in response to glucose. These findings suggest that EG cell derivatives may eventually serve as a source of insulin producing cells for the treatment of diabetes.

Comparative thermometric coagulation studies of plasmas from normal outbred Swiss Webster mice and persons.

PubMed

Tsang, V C; Wyatt, C R; Damian, R T

1979-06-01

The functional capabilities of a thermometric clot-timer have been demonstrated in a comparative study of human and mouse plasma coagulation. The influence of some variables on coagulation times of mouse and human plasmas were examined in activated partial thromboplastin time, one-stage prothrombin time, and Russell's viper venom time assays. Mouse plasma coagulation times were generally shorter and more reproducible than those of human plasma. Optimal assay conditions are also described.

Coupled microwave ECR and radio-frequency plasma source for plasma processing

DOEpatents

Tsai, Chin-Chi; Haselton, Halsey H.

1994-01-01

In a dual plasma device, the first plasma is a microwave discharge having its own means of plasma initiation and control. The microwave discharge operates at electron cyclotron resonance (ECR), and generates a uniform plasma over a large area of about 1000 cm.sup.2 at low pressures below 0.1 mtorr. The ECR microwave plasma initiates the second plasma, a radio frequency (RF) plasma maintained between parallel plates. The ECR microwave plasma acts as a source of charged particles, supplying copious amounts of a desired charged excited species in uniform manner to the RF plasma. The parallel plate portion of the apparatus includes a magnetic filter with static magnetic field structure that aids the formation of ECR zones in the two plasma regions, and also assists in the RF plasma also operating at electron cyclotron resonance.

Coupled microwave ECR and radio-frequency plasma source for plasma processing

DOEpatents

Tsai, C.C.; Haselton, H.H.

1994-03-08

In a dual plasma device, the first plasma is a microwave discharge having its own means of plasma initiation and control. The microwave discharge operates at electron cyclotron resonance (ECR), and generates a uniform plasma over a large area of about 1000 cm[sup 2] at low pressures below 0.1 mtorr. The ECR microwave plasma initiates the second plasma, a radio frequency (RF) plasma maintained between parallel plates. The ECR microwave plasma acts as a source of charged particles, supplying copious amounts of a desired charged excited species in uniform manner to the RF plasma. The parallel plate portion of the apparatus includes a magnetic filter with static magnetic field structure that aids the formation of ECR zones in the two plasma regions, and also assists in the RF plasma also operating at electron cyclotron resonance. 4 figures.

Influence of heat and particle fluxes nonlocality on spatial distribution of plasma density in two-chamber inductively coupled plasma sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kudryavtsev, A. A.; Serditov, K. Yu.

2012-07-01

This study presents 2D simulations of the two-chamber inductively coupled plasma source where power is supplied in the small discharge chamber and extends by electron thermal conductivity mechanism to the big diffusion chamber. Depending on pressure, two main scenarios of plasma density and its spatial distribution behavior were identified. One case is characterized by the localization of plasma in the small driver chamber where power is deposed. Another case describes when the diffusion chamber becomes the main source of plasma with maximum of the electron density. The differences in spatial distribution are caused by local or non-local behavior of electron energy transport in the discharge volume due to different characteristic scale of heat transfer with electronic conductivity.

Numerical study of the inductive plasma coupling to ramp up the plasma density for the Linac4 H- ion source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ohta, M.; Mattei, S.; Yasumoto, M.; Hatayama, A.; Lettry, J.

2014-02-01

In the Linac4 H- ion source, the plasma is generated by an RF antenna operated at 2 MHz. In order to investigate the conditions necessary for ramping up the plasma density of the Linac4 H- ion source in the low plasma density, a numerical study has been performed for a wide range of parameter space of RF coil current and initial pressure from H2 gas injection. We have employed an Electromagnetic Particle in Cell model, in which the collision processes have been calculated by a Monte Carlo method. The results have shown that the range of initial gas pressure from 2 to 3 Pa is suitable for ramping up plasma density via inductive coupling.

ECR ion source with electron gun

DOEpatents

Xie, Z.Q.; Lyneis, C.M.

1993-10-26

An Advanced Electron Cyclotron Resonance ion source having an electron gun for introducing electrons into the plasma chamber of the ion source is described. The ion source has a injection enclosure and a plasma chamber tank. The plasma chamber is defined by a plurality of longitudinal magnets. The electron gun injects electrons axially into the plasma chamber such that ionization within the plasma chamber occurs in the presence of the additional electrons produced by the electron gun. The electron gun has a cathode for emitting electrons therefrom which is heated by current supplied from an AC power supply while bias potential is provided by a bias power supply. A concentric inner conductor and outer conductor carry heating current to a carbon chuck and carbon pusher which hold the cathode in place and also heat the cathode. In the Advanced Electron Cyclotron Resonance ion source, the electron gun replaces the conventional first stage used in prior electron cyclotron resonance ion generators. 5 figures.

Investigation of clinical pharmacokinetic variability of an opioid antagonist through physiologically based absorption modeling.

PubMed

Ding, Xuan; He, Minxia; Kulkarni, Rajesh; Patel, Nita; Zhang, Xiaoyu

2013-08-01

Identifying the source of inter- and/or intrasubject variability in pharmacokinetics (PK) provides fundamental information in understanding the pharmacokinetics-pharmacodynamics relationship of a drug and project its efficacy and safety in clinical populations. This identification process can be challenging given that a large number of potential causes could lead to PK variability. Here we present an integrated approach of physiologically based absorption modeling to investigate the root cause of unexpectedly high PK variability of a Phase I clinical trial drug. LY2196044 exhibited high intersubject variability in the absorption phase of plasma concentration-time profiles in humans. This could not be explained by in vitro measurements of drug properties and excellent bioavailability with low variability observed in preclinical species. GastroPlus™ modeling suggested that the compound's optimal solubility and permeability characteristics would enable rapid and complete absorption in preclinical species and in humans. However, simulations of human plasma concentration-time profiles indicated that despite sufficient solubility and rapid dissolution of LY2196044 in humans, permeability and/or transit in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract may have been negatively affected. It was concluded that clinical PK variability was potentially due to the drug's antagonism on opioid receptors that affected its transit and absorption in the GI tract. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Lack of species-specific difference in pulmonary function when using mouse versus human plasma in a mouse model of hemorrhagic shock.

PubMed

Peng, Zhanglong; Pati, Shibani; Fontaine, Magali J; Hall, Kelly; Herrera, Anthony V; Kozar, Rosemary A

2016-11-01

Clinical studies have demonstrated that the early and empiric use of plasma improves survival after hemorrhagic shock. We have demonstrated in rodent models of hemorrhagic shock that resuscitation with plasma is protective to the lungs compared with lactated Ringer's solution. As our long-term objective is to determine the molecular mechanisms that modulate plasma's protective effects in injured bleeding patients, we have used human plasma in a mouse model of hemorrhagic shock. The goal of the current experiments is to determine if there are significant adverse effects on lung injury when using human versus mouse plasma in an established murine model of hemorrhagic shock and laparotomy. Mice underwent laparotomy and 90 minutes of hemorrhagic shock to a mean arterial pressure (MAP) of 35 ± 5 mm Hg followed by resuscitation at 1× shed blood using either mouse fresh frozen plasma (FFP), human FFP, or human lyophilized plasma. Mean arterial pressure was recorded during shock and for the first 30 minutes of resuscitation. After 3 hours, animals were killed, and lungs collected for analysis. There was a significant increase in early MAP when mouse FFP was used to resuscitate animals compared with human FFP or human lyophilized plasma. However, despite these differences, analysis of the mouse lungs revealed no significant differences in pulmonary histopathology, lung permeability, or lung edema between all three plasma groups. Analysis of neutrophil infiltration in the lungs revealed that mouse FFP decreased neutrophil influx as measured by neutrophil staining; however, myeloperoxidase immunostaining revealed no significant differences in between groups. The study of human plasma in a mouse model of hemorrhagic shock is feasible but does reveal some differences compared with mouse plasma-based resuscitation in physiologic measures such as MAP postresuscitation. Measures of end organ function such as lung injury appear to be comparable in this acute model of hemorrhagic shock and resuscitation.

A technique to control cross-field diffusion of plasma across a transverse magnetic field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hazarika, P.; Chakraborty, M.; Das, B. K.; Bandyopadhyay, M.

2016-12-01

A study to control charged particle transport across a transverse magnetic field (TMF), popularly known as the magnetic filter in a negative ion source, has been carried out in a double plasma device. In the experimental setup, the TMF placed between the two magnetic cages divides the whole plasma chamber into two distinct regions, viz., the source and the target on the basis of the plasma production and the corresponding electron temperature. The plasma produced in the source region by the filament discharge method diffuses into the target region through the TMF. Data are acquired by the Langmuir probe and are compared in different source configurations, in terms of external biasing applied to metallic plates inserted in the TMF plane but in the orthogonal direction. The effect of the direction of current between the two plates in either polarity of bias in the presence of TMF on the plasma parameters and the cross-field transport of charge particles are discussed.

Helicon Wave Physics Impacts on Electrodeless Thruster Design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gilland, James H.

2007-01-01

Effective generation of helicon waves for high density plasma sources is determined by the dispersion relation and plasma power balance. Helicon wave plasma sources inherently require an applied magnetic field of .01-0.1 T, an antenna properly designed to couple to the helicon wave in the plasma, and an rf power source in the 10-100 s of MHz, depending on propellant choice. For a plasma thruster, particularly one with a high specific impulse (>2000 s), the physics of the discharge would also have to address the use of electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) heating and magnetic expansion. In all cases the system design includes an optimized magnetic field coil, plasma source chamber, and antenna. A preliminary analysis of such a system, calling on experimental data where applicable and calculations where required, has been initiated at Glenn Research Center. Analysis results showing the mass scaling of various components as well as thruster performance projections and their impact on thruster size are discussed.

Helicon Wave Physics Impacts on Electrodeless Thruster Design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gilland, James

2003-01-01

Effective generation of helicon waves for high density plasma sources is determined by the dispersion relation and plasma power balance. Helicon wave plasma sources inherently require an applied magnetic field of .01-0.1 T, an antenna properly designed to couple to the helicon wave in the plasma, and an rf power source in the 10-100 s of MHz, depending on propellant choice. For a plasma thruster, particularly one with a high specific impulse (>2000 s), the physics of the discharge would also have to address the use of electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) heating and magnetic expansion. In all cases the system design includes an optimized magnetic field coil, plasma source chamber, and antenna. A preliminary analysis of such a system, calling on experimental data where applicable and calculations where required, has been initiated at Glenn Research Center. Analysis results showing the mass scaling of various components as well as thruster performance projections and their impact on thruster size are discussed.

Fibulin-1 purification from human plasma using affinity chromatography on Factor H-Sepharose

PubMed Central

DiScipio, Richard G.; Liddington, Robert C.; Schraufstatter, Ingrid U.

2016-01-01

A method is reported to purify Fibulin-1 from human plasma resulting in a 36% recovery. The steps involve removal of the cryoglobulin and the vitamin K dependent proteins followed by polyethylene glycol and ammonium sulfate precipitations, DEAE-Sephadex column chromatography and finally Factor H-Sepharose affinity purification. The procedure is designed to be integrated into an overall scheme for the isolation of over 30 plasma proteins from a single batch of human plasma. Results from mass spectroscopy, SDS-PAGE, and Western blotting indicate that human plasma Fibulin-1 is a single chain of the largest isotype. Functional binding assays demonstrated calcium ion dependent interaction of Fibulin-1 for fibrinogen, fibronectin, and Factor H. The procedure described is the first to our knowledge that enables a large scale purification of Fibulin-1 from human plasma. PMID:26826315

Shunting arc plasma source for pure carbon ion beam.

PubMed

Koguchi, H; Sakakita, H; Kiyama, S; Shimada, T; Sato, Y; Hirano, Y

2012-02-01

A plasma source is developed using a coaxial shunting arc plasma gun to extract a pure carbon ion beam. The pure carbon ion beam is a new type of deposition system for diamond and other carbon materials. Our plasma device generates pure carbon plasma from solid-state carbon material without using a hydrocarbon gas such as methane gas, and the plasma does not contain any hydrogen. The ion saturation current of the discharge measured by a double probe is about 0.2 mA∕mm(2) at the peak of the pulse.

Shunting arc plasma source for pure carbon ion beam

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Koguchi, H.; Sakakita, H.; Kiyama, S.

2012-02-15

A plasma source is developed using a coaxial shunting arc plasma gun to extract a pure carbon ion beam. The pure carbon ion beam is a new type of deposition system for diamond and other carbon materials. Our plasma device generates pure carbon plasma from solid-state carbon material without using a hydrocarbon gas such as methane gas, and the plasma does not contain any hydrogen. The ion saturation current of the discharge measured by a double probe is about 0.2 mA/mm{sup 2} at the peak of the pulse.

Experimental investigation of microwave interaction with magnetoplasma in miniature multipolar configuration using impedance measurements

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dey, Indranuj, E-mail: indranuj@aees.kyushu-u.ac.jp; Toyoda, Yuji; Yamamoto, Naoji

2014-09-15

A miniature microwave plasma source employing both radial and axial magnetic fields for plasma confinement has been developed for micro-propulsion applications. Plasma is initiated by launching microwaves via a short monopole antenna to circumvent geometrical cutoff limitations. The amplitude and phase of the forward and reflected microwave power is measured to obtain the complex reflection coefficient from which the equivalent impedance of the plasma source is determined. Effect of critical plasma density condition is reflected in the measurements and provides insight into the working of the miniature plasma source. A basic impedance calculation model is developed to help in understandingmore » the experimental observations. From experiment and theory, it is seen that the equivalent impedance magnitude is controlled by the coaxial discharge boundary conditions, and the phase is influenced primarily by the plasma immersed antenna impedance.« less

The ionization length in plasmas with finite temperature ion sources

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jelic, N.; Kos, L.; Duhovnik, J.

2009-12-15

The ionization length is an important quantity which up to now has been precisely determined only in plasmas which assume that the ions are born at rest, i.e., in discharges known as 'cold ion-source' plasmas. Presented here are the results of our calculations of the ionization lengths in plasmas with an arbitrary ion source temperature. Harrison and Thompson (H and T) [Proc. Phys. Soc. 74, 145 (1959)] found the values of this quantity for the cases of several ion strength potential profiles in the well-known Tonks-Langmuir [Phys. Rev. 34, 876 (1929)] discharge, which is characterized by 'cold' ion temperature. Thismore » scenario is also known as the 'singular' ion-source discharge. The H and T analytic result covers cases of ion sources proportional to exp(betaPHI) with PHI the normalized plasma potential and beta=0,1,2 values, which correspond to particular physical scenarios. Many years following H and T's work, Bissell and Johnson (B and J) [Phys. Fluids 30, 779 (1987)] developed a model with the so-called 'warm' ion-source temperature, i.e., 'regular' ion source, under B and J's particular assumption that the ionization strength is proportional to the local electron density. However, it appears that B and J were not interested in determining the ionization length at all. The importance of this quantity to theoretical modeling was recognized by Riemann, who recently answered all the questions of the most advanced up-to-date plasma-sheath boundary theory with cold ions [K.-U. Riemann, Phys. Plasmas 13, 063508 (2006)] but still without the stiff warm ion-source case solution, which is highly resistant to solution via any available analytic method. The present article is an extension of H and T's results obtained for a single point only with ion source temperature T{sub n}=0 to arbitrary finite ion source temperatures. The approach applied in this work is based on the method recently developed by Kos et al. [Phys. Plasmas 16, 093503 (2009)].« less

Computational studies for a multiple-frequency electron cyclotron resonance ion source (abstract)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Alton, G.D.

1996-03-01

The number density of electrons, the energy (electron temperature), and energy distribution are three of the fundamental properties which govern the performance of electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) ion sources in terms of their capability to produce high charge state ions. The maximum electron energy is affected by several processes including the ability of the plasma to absorb power. In principle, the performances of an ECR ion source can be realized by increasing the physical size of the ECR zone in relation to the total plasma volume. The ECR zones can be increased either in the spatial or frequency domains inmore » any ECR ion source based on B-minimum plasma confinement principles. The former technique requires the design of a carefully tailored magnetic field geometry so that the central region of the plasma volume is a large, uniformly distributed plasma volume which surrounds the axis of symmetry, as proposed in Ref. . Present art forms of the ECR source utilize single frequency microwave power supplies to maintain the plasma discharge; because the magnetic field distribution continually changes in this source design, the ECR zones are relegated to thin {open_quote}{open_quote}surfaces{close_quote}{close_quote} which surround the axis of symmetry. As a consequence of the small ECR zone in relation to the total plasma volume, the probability for stochastic heating of the electrons is quite low, thereby compromising the source performance. This handicap can be overcome by use of broadband, multiple frequency microwave power as evidenced by the enhanced performances of the CAPRICE and AECR ion sources when two frequency microwave power was utilized. We have used particle-in-cell codes to simulate the magnetic field distributions in these sources and to demonstrate the advantages of using multiple, discrete frequencies over single frequencies to power conventional ECR ion sources. (Abstract Truncated)« less

Plasma protein hydroperoxides during aging in humans: correlation with paraoxonase 1 (PON1) arylesterase activity and plasma total thiols.

PubMed

Mehdi, Mohammad Murtaza; Rizvi, Syed Ibrahim

2013-02-01

Oxidative stress is thought to play a major role in the development of several age-dependent diseases. Proteins are major targets for oxidative attack. Protein hydroperoxides are formed by hydroxyl and singlet oxygen attack on protein, forming relatively stable hydroperoxides on histidine, tyrosine and tryptophan residues. This study investigated the levels of plasma protein hydroperoxides and antioxidant potential of plasma during aging in humans. We correlated the protein hydroperoxide formation with plasma antioxidant potential, paraoxonase 1 (PON1) arylesterase activity and plasma total thiols. The protein hydroperoxides and antioxidant potential were measured in plasma of human subjects aged between 20 and 81 years of both genders. Increase in plasma protein hydroperoxides and decrease in plasma antioxidant potential were observed as function of human age. This study provides strong correlation between plasma protein hydroperoxides formation and decrease in plasma antioxidant potential during aging. PON1 arylesterase activity and plasma total thiols levels were also found to show significant correlation with increasing levels of plasma protein hydroperoxides during aging. The plasma protein hydroperoxides provide a reliable marker of long-term redox balance and degree of oxidative stress during aging process. Copyright © 2013 IMSS. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Personalized disease-specific protein corona influences the therapeutic impact of graphene oxide

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hajipour, Mohammad Javad; Raheb, Jamshid; Akhavan, Omid; Arjmand, Sareh; Mashinchian, Omid; Rahman, Masoud; Abdolahad, Mohammad; Serpooshan, Vahid; Laurent, Sophie; Mahmoudi, Morteza

2015-05-01

The hard corona, the protein shell that is strongly attached to the surface of nano-objects in biological fluids, is recognized as the first layer that interacts with biological objects (e.g., cells and tissues). The decoration of the hard corona (i.e., the type, amount, and conformation of the attached proteins) can define the biological fate of the nanomaterial. Recent developments have revealed that corona decoration strongly depends on the type of disease in human patients from which the plasma is obtained as a protein source for corona formation (referred to as the `personalized protein corona'). In this study, we demonstrate that graphene oxide (GO) sheets can trigger different biological responses in the presence of coronas obtained from various types of diseases. GO sheets were incubated with plasma from human subjects with different diseases/conditions, including hypofibrinogenemia, blood cancer, thalassemia major, thalassemia minor, rheumatism, fauvism, hypercholesterolemia, diabetes, and pregnancy. Identical sheets coated with varying protein corona decorations exhibited significantly different cellular toxicity, apoptosis, and uptake, reactive oxygen species production, lipid peroxidation and nitrogen oxide levels. The results of this report will help researchers design efficient and safe, patient-specific nano biomaterials in a disease type-specific manner for clinical and biological applications.The hard corona, the protein shell that is strongly attached to the surface of nano-objects in biological fluids, is recognized as the first layer that interacts with biological objects (e.g., cells and tissues). The decoration of the hard corona (i.e., the type, amount, and conformation of the attached proteins) can define the biological fate of the nanomaterial. Recent developments have revealed that corona decoration strongly depends on the type of disease in human patients from which the plasma is obtained as a protein source for corona formation (referred to as the `personalized protein corona'). In this study, we demonstrate that graphene oxide (GO) sheets can trigger different biological responses in the presence of coronas obtained from various types of diseases. GO sheets were incubated with plasma from human subjects with different diseases/conditions, including hypofibrinogenemia, blood cancer, thalassemia major, thalassemia minor, rheumatism, fauvism, hypercholesterolemia, diabetes, and pregnancy. Identical sheets coated with varying protein corona decorations exhibited significantly different cellular toxicity, apoptosis, and uptake, reactive oxygen species production, lipid peroxidation and nitrogen oxide levels. The results of this report will help researchers design efficient and safe, patient-specific nano biomaterials in a disease type-specific manner for clinical and biological applications. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr00520e

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wu, Chaochao; Duan, Jicheng; Liu, Tao

Human biofluids, especially blood plasma or serum, hold great potential as the sources of candidate biomarkers for various diseases; however, the enormous dynamic range of protein concentrations in biofluids represents a significant analytical challenge for detecting promising low-abundance proteins. Over the last decade, various immunoaffinity chromatographic methods have been developed and routinely applied for separating low-abundance proteins from the high- and moderate-abundance proteins, thus enabling much more effective detection of low-abundance proteins. Herein, we review the advances of immunoaffinity separation methods and their contributions to the proteomic applications in human biofluids. The limitations and future perspectives of immunoaffinity separation methodsmore » are also discussed.« less

False-positive pregnancy test after transfusion of solvent/detergent-treated plasma.

PubMed

Jilma-Stohlawetz, Petra; Wreford-Bush, Tim; Mills, Francesca; Davidson, Fiona; Kursten, Friedrich W; Jilma, Bernd; Birchall, Janet

2017-12-01

The transmission of pathogens, antibodies, and proteins is a possible consequence of blood product transfusion. A female patient had an unexpected positive serum β-human chorionic gonadotropin result, indicative of pregnancy, after she had received a transfusion with 1 unit of platelet concentrate, 4 units of red blood cells, and 4 units of pooled solvent/detergent-treated plasma (Octaplas). To investigate the possibility of passive transfusion of β-human chorionic gonadotropin from the plasma transfusion, one additional unit from the same batch was thawed and analyzed. To validate the β-human chorionic gonadotropin assay for use in solvent/detergent-treated plasma and to investigate any interference in the assay, dilution experiments were performed using the implicated plasma batch diluted with male and non-pregnant female sera. Also, plasma from a known pregnant woman was diluted with Octaplas (tested negative for β-human chorionic gonadotropin) and with a male serum to validate the assay for use in solvent/detergent-treated plasma. The implicated solvent/detergent-treated plasma had a mean β-human chorionic gonadotropin level of 91.5 mIU/mL. Results from the dilution experiments revealed an excellent correlation (r > 0.99) between β-human chorionic gonadotropin measurement in solvent/detergent-treated plasma and male serum and no over or under recovery of the expected results. Further measurements of β-human chorionic gonadotropin levels in the female recipient revealed an estimated half-life of 6 hours. This case demonstrates the importance of considering the possibility of passive transmission of analytes to a patient from the transfusion of blood products. Furthermore, the measurement of β-human chorionic gonadotropin is valid in solvent/detergent-treated plasma using a Roche Cobas analyzer. © 2017 AABB.

Helicon wave-generated plasmas for negative ion beams for fusion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Furno, Ivo; Agnello, Riccardo; Fantz, U.; Howling, Alan; Jacquier, Remy; Marini, Claudio; Plyushchev, Gennady; Guittienne, Philippe; Simonin, Alain

2017-10-01

In the next generation of fusion reactors, such as DEMO, neutral beam injectors (NBIs) of high energy (0.8-1 MeV) deuterium atoms with high wall-plug efficiency (>50%) will be required to reach burning plasma conditions and to provide a significant amount of current drive. The present NBI system for DEMO assumes that 50 MW is delivered to the plasma by 3 NBIs. In the Siphore NBI concept, negative deuterium ions are extracted from a long, thin ion source 3 m high and 15 cm wide, accelerated and subsequently photo-neutralized. This requires the development of a new generation of negative ion sources. At the Swiss Plasma Center, a novel radio frequency helicon plasma source, based on a resonant network antenna source delivering up to 10 kW at 13.56 MHz, has been developed and is presently under study on the Resonant Antenna Ion Device (RAID). RAID is a linear device (1.9 m total length, 0.4 m diameter) and is equipped with an extensive set of diagnostics for full plasma characterization. In this work, the principles of operation of resonant antennas as helicon sources are introduced. We present absolute spectroscopy, Langmuir probe, and interferometry measurements on helicon plasmas. We characterize the performance of the source in terms of hydrogen/deuterium dissociation and negative ion production as a function of the input power. Furthermore, first results with the helicon birdcage antenna installed on the Cybele negative ion source at CEA-IRFM are presented, as a first step towards the validation of the Siphore concept.

In vivo delivery of recombinant human growth hormone from genetically engineered human fibroblasts implanted within Baxter immunoisolation devices.

PubMed

Josephs, S F; Loudovaris, T; Dixit, A; Young, S K; Johnson, R C

1999-01-01

Continuous delivery of therapeutic peptide to the systemic circulation would be the optimal treatment for a variety of diseases. The Baxter TheraCyte system is a membrane encapsulation system developed for implantation of tissues, cells such as endocrine cells or cell lines genetically engineered for therapeutic peptide delivery in vivo. To demonstrate the utility of this system, cell lines were developed which expressed human growth hormone (hGH) at levels exceeding 1 microgram per million cells per day. These were loaded into devices which were then implanted into juvenile nude rats. Significant levels of hGH of up to 2.5 ng/ml were detected in plasma throughout the six month duration of the study. In contrast, animals implanted with free cells showed peak plasma levels of 0.5 to 1.2 ng four days after implantation with no detectable hGH beyond 10 days. Histological examination of explanted devices showed they were vascularized and contained cells that were viable and morphologically healthy. After removal of the implants, no hGH could be detected which confirmed that the source of hGH was from cells contained within the device. The long term expression of human growth hormone as a model peptide has implications for the peptide therapies for a variety of human diseases using membrane encapsulated cells.

Study on the role of active radicals on plasma sterilization inside small diameter flexible polymeric tubes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mstsuura, Hiroto; Fujiyama, Takatomo; Okuno, Yasuki; Furuta, Masakazu; Okuda, Shuichi; Takemura, Yuichiro

2015-09-01

Recently, atmospheric pressure discharge plasma has gathered attention in various fields. Among them, plasma sterilization with many types of plasma source has studied for decades and its mechanism is still an open question. If active radicals produced in plasma has main contribution of killing bacterias, direct contact of the so-called plasma flame might not be necessary. To confirm this, sterilization inside small diameter flexible polymeric tubes is studied in present work. DBD type plasma jet is produce by flowing helium gas in a glass tube. A long polymeric tube is connected and plasma jet is introduced into it. Plasma flame length depends on helium gas flow rate, but limited to about 10 cm in our experimental condition. E.colis set at the exit plasma source is easily killed during 10 min irradiation. At the tube end (about 20 cm away from plasma source exit), sterilization is possible with 30 min operation. This result shows that active radical is produced with helium plasma and mist contained in sample, and it can be transferred more than 20 cm during it life time. More plasma diagnostic data will also be shown at the conference. This work was partially supported by the ''ZE Research Program, IAE(ZE27B-4).

Comparative lytic efficacy of rt-PA and ultrasound in porcine versus human clots.

PubMed

Huang, Shenwen; Shekhar, Himanshu; Holland, Christy K

2017-01-01

Porcine thrombi are employed routinely in preclinical models of ischemic stroke. In this study, we examined the differential lytic susceptibility of porcine and human whole blood clots with and without the use of microbubbles and ultrasound (US) as an adjuvant. An in vitro system equipped with time-lapse microscopy was used to evaluate recombinant tissue-plasminogen activator (rt-PA) lysis of porcine and human clots in the same species or cross species plasma. Human and porcine whole blood clots were treated with rt-PA and an echo contrast agent, Definity®, and exposed to intermittent 120 kHz US. The rt-PA lytic efficacy observed for porcine clots in porcine plasma was 22 times lower than for human clots in human plasma reported previously. Further, porcine clots did not exhibit increased lysis with adjuvant Definity® and US exposure. However, the rt-PA lytic susceptibility of the porcine clots in human plasma was similar to that of human clots in human plasma. Human clots perfused with porcine plasma did not respond to rt-PA, but adjuvant use of Definity® and US enhanced lysis. These results reveal considerable differences in lytic susceptibility of porcine clots and human clots to rt-PA. The use of porcine clot models to test new human thrombolytic therapies may necessitate modulation of coagulation and thrombolytic factors to reflect human hemostasis accurately.

SPE-UPLC-MS/MS assay for determination of letrozole in human plasma and its application to bioequivalence study in healthy postmenopausal Indian women.

PubMed

Vanol, Pravin G; Singhal, Puran; Shah, Priyanka A; Shah, Jaivik V; Shrivastav, Pranav S; Sanyal, Mallika

2016-08-01

A rapid and sensitive ultra performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) method is described for determination of letrozole in human plasma. Following solid phase extraction (SPE) of letrozole and letrozole-d4 on Orochem DVB-LP cartridges, chromatography was performed on Acquity UPLC BEH C 18 (50 mm×2.1 mm, 1.7 µm) column using methanol-0.1% formic acid in water (85:15, v/v) as the mobile phase. Detection was carried out on a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer with an electrospray source, operated under positive ionization mode. Quantitation of letrozole and letrozole-d4 was done using multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) following the transitions at m/z 286.2→217.0 and m/z 290.2→221.0, respectively. The calibration plots were linear through the concentration range of 0.10-100 ng/mL ( r 2 ≥0.9990) using 100 µL human plasma. The extraction recovery of letrozole ranged from 94.3% to 96.2% and the intra-batch and inter-batch precision was ≤5.2%. The method was successfully applied to a bioequivalence study of letrozole after oral administration of 2.5 mg tablet formulation to 16 healthy postmenopausal Indian women. The assay reproducibility was also established through incurred sample reanalysis (ISR) of 74 subject samples.

Antioxidant capacity of human blood plasma and human urine: simultaneous evaluation of the ORAC index and ascorbic acid concentration employing pyrogallol red as probe.

PubMed

Torres, P; Galleguillos, P; Lissi, E; López-Alarcón, C

2008-10-15

The oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) methodology has been employed to estimate the antioxidant capacity of human blood plasma and human urine using pyrogallol red (ORAC-PGR) as target molecule. Uric acid, reduced glutathione, human serum albumin, and ascorbic acid (ASC) inhibited the consumption of pyrogallol red, but only ASC generated an induction time. Human blood plasma and human urine protected efficiently pyrogallol red. In these assays, both biological fluids generated neat induction times that were removed by ascorbate oxidase. From these results, ORAC-PGR method could be proposed as a simple alternative to evaluate an ORAC index and, simultaneously, to estimate the concentration of ascorbic acid in human blood plasma or human urine.

Two-Dimensional Transport Studies for the Composition and Structure of the Io Plasma Torus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smyth, William H.

2003-01-01

The overall objective of this project is to investigate the roles of local and spatially extended plasma sources created by Io, plasma torus chemistry, and plasma convective and diffusive transport in producing the long-lived S(+), S(++) and O(+) radial ribbon structures of the plasma torus, their System III longitude and local-time asymmetries, their energy sources and their possible time variability. To accomplish this objective, two-dimensional [radial (L) and System III longitude] plasma transport equations for the flux-tube plasma content and energy content will be solved that include the convective motions for both the east-west electric field and co-rotational velocity-lag profile near Io s orbit, radial diffusion, and the spacetime dependent flux-tube production and loss created by both neutral-plasma and plasma-ion reaction chemistry in the plasma torus. For neutral-plasma chemistry, the project will for the first time undertake the calculation of realistic three-dimensional, spatially-extended, and time-varying contributions to the flux-tube ion-production and loss that are produced by Io's corona and extended neutral clouds. The unknown two-dimensional spatial nature of diffusion in the plasma transport will be isolated and better defined in the investigation by the collective consideration of the foregoing different physical processes. For energy transport, the energy flow from hot pickup ions (and a new electron source) to thermal ions and electrons will be included in investigating the System III longitude and local-time temperature asymmetries in the plasma torus. The research is central to the scope of the NASA Sun-Earth Connection Roadmap in Quest II Campaign 4 "Comparative Planetary Space Environments" by addressing key questions for understanding the magnetosphere of planets with high rotation rates and large internal plasma sources and, in addition, is of considerable importance to the NASA Solar System Exploration Science Theme. In this regard, Jupiter is the most extreme example with its rapid rotation and with its inner Galilean satellite Io providing the dominant plasma source for the magnetosphere.

Pulsed Plasma Electron Sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krasik, Yakov

2008-11-01

Pulsed (˜10-7 s) electron beams with high current density (>10^2 A/cm^2) are generated in diodes with electric field of E > 10^6 V/cm. The source of electrons in these diodes is explosive emission plasma, which limits pulse duration; in the case E < 10^5 V/cm this plasma is not uniform and there is a time delay in its formation. Thus, there is a continuous interest in research of electron sources which can be used for generation of uniform electron beams produced at E <= 10^5 V/cm. In the present report, several types of plasma electron source (PES) will be considered. The first type of PES is fiber-based cathodes, with and without CsI coating. The operation of these cathodes is governed by the formation of the flashover plasma which serves as a source of electrons. The second type of PES is the ferroelectric plasma source (FPS). The operation of FPS, characterized by the formation of dense surface flashover plasma is accompanied also by the generation of fast microparticles and energetic neutrals. The latter was explained by Coulomb micro-explosions of the ferroelectric surface due to an large time-varying electric field at the front of the expanding plasma. A short review of recent achievements in the operation of a multi-FPS-assisted hollow anode to generate a large area electron beam will be presented as well. Finally, parameters of the plasma produced by a multi-capillary cathode with FPS and velvet igniters will be discussed. Ya. E. Krasik, J. Z. Gleizer, D. Yarmolich, A. Krokhmal, V. Ts. Gurovich, S.Efimov, J. Felsteiner V. Bernshtam, and Yu. M. Saveliev, J. Appl. Phys. 98, 093308 (2005). Ya. E. Krasik, A. Dunaevsky, and J. Felsteiner, Phys. Plasmas 8, 2466 (2001). D. Yarmolich, V. Vekselman, V. Tz. Gurovich, and Ya. E. Krasik, Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 075004 (2008). J. Z. Gleizer, Y. Hadas and Ya. E. Krasik, Europhysics Lett. 82, 55001 (2008).

Process diagnostics and monitoring using the multipole resonance probe in an inhomogeneous plasma for ion-assisted deposition of optical coatings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Styrnoll, T.; Harhausen, J.; Lapke, M.; Storch, R.; Brinkmann, R. P.; Foest, R.; Ohl, A.; Awakowicz, P.

2013-08-01

The application of a multipole resonance probe (MRP) for diagnostic and monitoring purposes in a plasma ion-assisted deposition (PIAD) process is reported. Recently, the MRP was proposed as an economical and industry compatible plasma diagnostic device (Lapke et al 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 042001). The major advantages of the MRP are its robustness against dielectric coating and its high sensitivity to measure the electron density. The PIAD process investigated is driven by the advanced plasma source (APS), which generates an ion beam in the deposition chamber for the production of high performance optical coatings. With a background neutral pressure of p0 ˜ 20 mPa the plasma expands from the source region into the recipient, leading to an inhomogeneous spatial distribution. Electron density and electron temperature vary over the distance from substrate (ne ˜ 109 cm-3 and Te,eff ˜ 2 eV) to the APS (ne ≳ 1012 cm-3 and Te,eff ˜ 20 eV) (Harhausen et al 2012 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 21 035012). This huge variation of the plasma parameters represents a big challenge for plasma diagnostics to operate precisely for all plasma conditions. The results obtained by the MRP are compared to those from a Langmuir probe chosen as reference diagnostics. It is demonstrated that the MRP is suited for the characterization of the PIAD plasma as well as for electron density monitoring. The latter aspect offers the possibility to develop new control schemes for complex industrial plasma environments.

Development of a long-slot microwave plasma source.

PubMed

Kuwata, Y; Kasuya, T; Miyamoto, N; Wada, M

2016-02-01

A 20 cm long 10 cm wide microwave plasma source was realized by inserting two 20 cm long 1.5 mm diameter rod antennas into the plasma. Plasma luminous distributions around the antennas were changed by magnetic field arrangement created by permanent magnets attached to the source. The distributions appeared homogeneous in one direction along the antenna when the spacing between the antenna and the source wall was 7.5 mm for the input microwave frequency of 2.45 GHz. Plasma density and temperature at a plane 20 cm downstream from the microwave shield were measured by a Langmuir probe array at 150 W microwave power input. The measured electron density and temperature varied over space from 3.0 × 10(9) cm(-3) to 5.8 × 10(9) cm(-3), and from 1.1 eV to 2.1 eV, respectively.

Next generation of Z* modelling tool for high intensity EUV and soft x-ray plasma sources simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zakharov, S. V.; Zakharov, V. S.; Choi, P.; Krukovskiy, A. Y.; Novikov, V. G.; Solomyannaya, A. D.; Berezin, A. V.; Vorontsov, A. S.; Markov, M. B.; Parot'kin, S. V.

2011-04-01

In the specifications for EUV sources, high EUV power at IF for lithography HVM and very high brightness for actinic mask and in-situ inspections are required. In practice, the non-equilibrium plasma dynamics and self-absorption of radiation limit the in-band radiance of the plasma and the usable radiation power of a conventional single unit EUV source. A new generation of the computational code Z* is currently developed under international collaboration in the frames of FP7 IAPP project FIRE for modelling of multi-physics phenomena in radiation plasma sources, particularly for EUVL. The radiation plasma dynamics, the spectral effects of self-absorption in LPP and DPP and resulting Conversion Efficiencies are considered. The generation of fast electrons, ions and neutrals is discussed. Conditions for the enhanced radiance of highly ionized plasma in the presence of fast electrons are evaluated. The modelling results are guiding a new generation of EUV sources being developed at Nano-UV, based on spatial/temporal multiplexing of individual high brightness units, to deliver the requisite brightness and power for both lithography HVM and actinic metrology applications.

Design of A Large Oxide Coated Cathode Plasma Source for Operation in High Magnetic Fields at the New LAPD

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leneman, David

2001-10-01

We use a Barium Oxide coated cathode to supply accelerated electrons as an energy source to from our plasma. Oxide coated cathodes have been used for decades in vacuum tubes and plasma research. Most of these have been small (1 cm dia.) or designed to operate in a low magnetic field where the J×B \\unboldmath forces on them are negligible. At the new LAPD we will have large diameter plasma sources at both ends of the machine which must operate in a 3.5 kG ambient magnetic field. We have designed and built one such source which is 72 cm in diameter. It will supply up to 20 kA of pulsed beam current and uses a 1 m by 1 m, 2.5 kA (dc), 150 kW heater. Solutions to various engineering issues will be discussed. These pertain to differential thermal expansion over 1 m distances, J×B \\unboldmath forces on the heater and cathode, heat containment and uniformity of the oxide coating and of plasma production. These issues are important to any experimenter who plans to build an oxide coated plasma source.

Design of a high particle flux hydrogen helicon plasma source for used in plasma materials interaction studies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Goulding, R. H.; Chen, G.; Meitner, S.

2009-11-26

Existing linear plasma materials interaction (PMI) facilities all use plasma sources with internal electrodes. An rf-based helicon source is of interest because high plasma densities can be generated with no internal electrodes, allowing true steady state operation with minimal impurity generation. Work has begun at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to develop a large (15 cm) diameter helicon source producing hydrogen plasmas with parameters suitable for use in a linear PMI device: n{sub e}{>=}10{sup 19} m{sup -3}, T{sub e} = 4-10 eV, particle flux {gamma}{sub p}>10{sup 23}m{sup -3} s{sup -1}, and magnetic field strength |B| up to 1 T inmore » the source region. The device, whose design is based on a previous hydrogen helicon source operated at ORNL[1], will operate at rf frequencies in the range 10-26 MHz, and power levels up to {approx}100 kW. Limitations in cooling will prevent operation for pulses longer than several seconds, but a major goal will be the measurement of power deposition on device structures so that a later steady state version can be designed. The device design, the diagnostics to be used, and results of rf modeling of the device will be discussed. These include calculations of plasma loading, resulting currents and voltages in antenna structures and the matching network, power deposition profiles, and the effect of high |B| operation on power absorption.« less

Studies for the Europagenic Plasma Source in Jupiter's Inner Magnetosphere during the Galileo Europa Mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smyth, William H.

2004-01-01

Progress in research to understand the three-dimensional nature of the Europagenic plasma torus is summarized. Efforts to improve the plasma torus description near Europa's orbit have included a better understanding of Europa's orbit and an improved description of the planetary magnetic field. New plasma torus chemistry for molecular and atomic species has been introduced and implemented in Europa neutral cloud models. Preliminary three-dimensional model calculations for Europa's neutral clouds and their plasma sources are presented.

Formation of ECR Plasma in a Dielectric Plasma Guide under Self-Excitation of a Standing Ion-Acoustic Wave

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balmashnov, A. A.; Kalashnikov, A. V.; Kalashnikov, V. V.; Stepina, S. P.; Umnov, A. M.

2018-01-01

The formation of a spatially localized plasma with a high brightness has been experimentally observed in a dielectric plasma guide under the electron cyclotron resonance discharge at the excitation of a standing ion-acoustic wave. The results obtained show the possibility of designing compact high-intensity radiation sources with a spectrum determined by the working gas or gas mixture type, high-intensity chemically active particle flow sources, and plasma thrusters for correcting orbits of light spacecraft.

Plasma x-ray radiation source.

PubMed

Popkov, N F; Kargin, V I; Ryaslov, E A; Pikar', A S

1995-01-01

This paper gives the results of studies on a plasma x-ray source, which enables one to obtain a 2.5-krad radiation dose per pulse over an area of 100 cm2 in the quantum energy range from 20 to 500 keV. Pulse duration is 100 ns. Spectral radiation distributions from a diode under various operation conditions of a plasma are obtained. A Marx generator served as an initial energy source of 120 kJ with a discharge time of T/4 = 10-6 s. A short electromagnetic pulse (10-7 s) was shaped using plasma erosion opening switches.

Micrometeorite erosion of the man rings as a source of plasma in the inner Saturnian plasma torus

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pospieszalska, M. K.; Johnson, R. E.

1991-01-01

Micrometeorite bombardment is presently suggested to be a source of water molecules and molecular ions in the region between the outer edge of the main rings of Saturn and Encedalus, adding to those neutrals and plasma that are generated by the sputtering of icy satellites. In view of uncertainties concerning the magnitude and distribution of the ring source, an examination is conducted of limiting cases. The implications of such cases for the Cassini division are calculated, and a discussion of their possible relevance to the region's neutral and plasma cloud is presented.

Development of a versatile multiaperture negative ion source.

PubMed

Cavenago, M; Kulevoy, T; Petrenko, S; Serianni, G; Antoni, V; Bigi, M; Fellin, F; Recchia, M; Veltri, P

2012-02-01

A 60 kV ion source (9 beamlets of 15 mA each of H(-)) and plasma generators are being developed at Consorzio RFX and INFN-LNL, for their versatility in experimental campaigns and for training. Unlike most experimental sources, the design aimed at continuous operation. Magnetic configuration can achieve a minimum ∣B∣ trap, smoothly merged with the extraction filter. Modular design allows for quick substitution and upgrading of parts such as the extraction and postacceleration grids or the electrodes in contact with plasma. Experiments with a radio frequency plasma generator and Faraday cage inside the plasma are also described.

X-ray microscopy of live biological micro-organisms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raja Al-Ani, Ma'an Nassar

Real-time, compact x-ray microscopy has the potential to benefit many scientific fields, including microbiology, pharmacology, organic chemistry, and physics. Single frame x-ray micro-radiography, produced by a compact, solid-state laser plasma source, allows scientists to use x-ray emission for elemental analysis, and to observe biological specimens in their natural state. In this study, x-ray images of mouse kidney tissue, live bacteria, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Burkholderia cepacia, and the bacteria's interaction with the antibiotic gentamicin, are examined using x-ray microscopy. For the purposes of comparing between confocal microscopy and x-ray microscopy, we introduced to our work the technique of gold labeling. Indirect immunofluorescence staining and immuno-gold labeling were applied on human lymphocytes and human tumor cells. Differential interference contrast microscopy (DIC) showed the lymphocyte body and nucleus, as did x-ray microscopy. However, the high resolution of x-ray microscopy allows us to differentiate between the gold particles bound to the antibodies and the free gold. A compact, tabletop Nd: glass laser is used in this study to produce x-rays from an Yttrium target. An atomic force microscope is used to scan the x-ray images from the developed photo-resist. The use of compact, tabletop laser plasma sources, in conjunction with x-ray microscopy, is a new technique that has great potential as a flexible, user-friendly scientific research tool.

Quantification of metronidazole in human plasma using a highly sensitive and rugged LC-MS/MS method for a bioequivalence study.

PubMed

Vanol, Pravin G; Sanyal, Mallika; Shah, Priyanka A; Shrivastav, Pranav S

2018-03-23

A highly sensitive, selective and rugged method has been described for the quantification of metronidazole (MTZ) in human plasma by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry using metronidazole-d4 as the internal standard (IS). The analyte and the IS were extracted from 100 μL plasma by liquid-liquid extraction. The clear samples obtained were chromatographed on an ACE C 18 (100 × 4.6 mm, 5 μm) column using acetonitrile and 10.0 mm ammonium formate in water, pH 4.00 (80:20, v/v) as the mobile phase. A triple quadrupole mass spectrometer system equipped with turbo ion spray source and operated in multiple reaction monitoring mode was used for the detection and quantification of MTZ. The calibration range was established from 0.01 to 10.0 μg/mL. The results of validation testing for precision and accuracy, selectivity, matrix effects, recovery and stability complied with current bioanalytical guidelines. A run time of 3.0 min permitted analysis of more than 300 samples in a day. The method was applied to a bioequivalence study with 250 mg MTZ tablet formulation in 24 healthy Indian males. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Characterization of the liver tissue interstitial fluid (TIF) proteome indicates potential for application in liver disease biomarker discovery.

PubMed

Sun, Wei; Ma, Jie; Wu, Songfeng; Yang, Dong; Yan, Yujuan; Liu, Kehui; Wang, Jinglan; Sun, Longqin; Chen, Ning; Wei, Handong; Zhu, Yunping; Xing, Baocai; Zhao, Xiaohang; Qian, Xiaohong; Jiang, Ying; He, Fuchu

2010-02-05

Tissue interstitial fluid (TIF) forms the interface between circulating body fluids and intracellular fluid. Pathological alterations of liver cells could be reflected in TIF, making it a promising source of liver disease biomarkers. Mouse liver TIF was extracted, separated by SDS-PAGE, analyzed by linear ion trap mass spectrometer, and 1450 proteins were identified. These proteins may be secreted, shed from membrane vesicles, or represent cellular breakdown products. They show different profiling patterns, quantities, and possibly modification/cleavage of intracellular proteins. The high solubility and even distribution of liver TIF supports its suitability for proteome analysis. Comparison of mouse liver TIF data with liver tissue and plasma proteome data identified major proteins that might be released from liver to plasma and serve as blood biomarkers of liver origin. This result was partially supported by comparison of human liver TIF data with human liver and plasma proteome data. Paired TIFs from tumor and nontumor liver tissues of a hepatocellular carcinoma patient were analyzed and the profile of subtracted differential proteins supports the potential for biomarker discovery in TIF. This study is the first analysis of the liver TIF proteome and provides a foundation for further application of TIF in liver disease biomarker discovery.

21 CFR 26.4 - Product coverage.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... subpart. (b) Human blood, human plasma, human tissues and organs, and veterinary immunologicals (under 9... the scope of this subpart. Human plasma derivatives (such as immunoglobulins and albumin...

21 CFR 26.4 - Product coverage.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... subpart. (b) Human blood, human plasma, human tissues and organs, and veterinary immunologicals (under 9... the scope of this subpart. Human plasma derivatives (such as immunoglobulins and albumin...

Plasma ignition and steady state simulations of the Linac4 H- ion source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mattei, S.; Ohta, M.; Yasumoto, M.; Hatayama, A.; Lettry, J.; Grudiev, A.

2014-02-01

The RF heating of the plasma in the Linac4 H- ion source has been simulated using a particle-in-cell Monte Carlo collision method. This model is applied to investigate the plasma formation starting from an initial low electron density of 1012 m-3 and its stabilization at 1018 m-3. The plasma discharge at low electron density is driven by the capacitive coupling with the electric field generated by the antenna, and as the electron density increases the capacitive electric field is shielded by the plasma and induction drives the plasma heating process. Plasma properties such as e-/ion densities and energies, sheath formation, and shielding effect are presented and provide insight to the plasma properties of the hydrogen plasma.

The importance of selecting a proper biological milieu for protein corona analysis in vitro: Human plasma versus human serum.

PubMed

Mirshafiee, Vahid; Kim, Raehyun; Mahmoudi, Morteza; Kraft, Mary L

2016-06-01

Nanoparticle (NP) exposure to biological fluids in the body results in protein binding to the NP surface, which forms a protein coating that is called the "protein corona". To simplify studies of protein-NP interactions and protein corona formation, NPs are incubated with biological solutions, such as human serum or human plasma, and the effects of this exposure are characterized in vitro. Yet, how NP exposure to these two different biological milieus affects protein corona composition and cell response has not been investigated. Here, we explore the differences between the protein coronas that form when NPs are incubated in human serum versus human plasma. NP characterization indicated that NPs that were exposed to human plasma had higher amounts of proteins bound to their surfaces, and were slightly larger in size than those exposed to human serum. In addition, significant differences in corona composition were also detected with gel electrophoresis and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry, where a higher fraction of coagulation proteins and complement factors were found on the plasma-exposed NPs. Flow cytometry and confocal microscopy showed that the uptake of plasma-exposed NPs was higher than that of serum-exposed NPs by RAW 264.7 macrophage immune cells, but not by NIH 3T3 fibroblast cells. This difference is likely due to the elevated amounts of opsonins, such as fibrinogen, on the surfaces of the NPs exposed to plasma, but not serum, because these components trigger NP internalization by immune cells. As the human plasma better mimics the composition of the in vivo environment, namely blood, in vitro protein corona studies should employ human plasma, and not human serum, so the biological phenomena that is observed is more similar to that occurring in vivo. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of a plasma generator for a long pulse ion source for neutral beam injectors.

PubMed

Watanabe, K; Dairaku, M; Tobari, H; Kashiwagi, M; Inoue, T; Hanada, M; Jeong, S H; Chang, D H; Kim, T S; Kim, B R; Seo, C S; Jin, J T; Lee, K W; In, S R; Oh, B H; Kim, J; Bae, Y S

2011-06-01

A plasma generator for a long pulse H(+)/D(+) ion source has been developed. The plasma generator was designed to produce 65 A H(+)/D(+) beams at an energy of 120 keV from an ion extraction area of 12 cm in width and 45 cm in length. Configuration of the plasma generator is a multi-cusp bucket type with SmCo permanent magnets. Dimension of a plasma chamber is 25 cm in width, 59 cm in length, and 32.5 cm in depth. The plasma generator was designed and fabricated at Japan Atomic Energy Agency. Source plasma generation and beam extraction tests for hydrogen coupling with an accelerator of the KSTAR ion source have been performed at the KSTAR neutral beam test stand under the agreement of Japan-Korea collaborative experiment. Spatial uniformity of the source plasma at the extraction region was measured using Langmuir probes and ±7% of the deviation from an averaged ion saturation current density was obtained. A long pulse test of the plasma generation up to 200 s with an arc discharge power of 70 kW has been successfully demonstrated. The arc discharge power satisfies the requirement of the beam production for the KSTAR NBI. A 70 keV, 41 A, 5 s hydrogen ion beam has been extracted with a high arc efficiency of 0.9 -1.1 A/kW at a beam extraction experiment. A deuteron yield of 77% was measured even at a low beam current density of 73 mA/cm(2). © 2011 American Institute of Physics

Neutral Beam Source and Target Plasma for Development of a Local Electric Field Fluctuation Diagnostic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bakken, M. R.; Burke, M. G.; Fonck, R. J.; Lewicki, B. T.; Rhodes, A. T.; Winz, G. R.

2016-10-01

A new diagnostic measuring local E-> (r , t) fluctuations is being developed for plasma turbulence studies in tokamaks. This is accomplished by measuring fluctuations in the separation of the π components in the Hα motional Stark spectrum. Fluctuations in this separation are expected to be Ẽ / ẼEMSE 10-3EMSE 10-3 . In addition to a high throughput, high speed spectrometer, the project requires a low divergence (Ω 0 .5°) , 80 keV, 2.5 A H0 beam and a target plasma test stand. The beam employs a washer-stack arc ion source to achieve a high species fraction at full energy. Laboratory tests of the ion source demonstrate repeatable plasmas with Te 10 eV and ne 1.6 ×1017 m-3, sufficient for the beam ion optics requirements. Te and ne scalings of the ion source plasma are presented with respect to operational parameters. A novel three-phase resonant converter power supply will provide 6 mA/cm2 of 80 keV H0 at the focal plane for pulse lengths up to 15 ms, with low ripple δV / 80 keV 0.05 % at 280 kHz. Diagnostic development and validation tests will be performed on a magnetized plasma test stand with 0.5 T field. The test chamber will utilize a washer-stack arc source to produce a target plasma comparable to edge tokamak plasmas. A bias-plate with programmable power supply will be used to impose Ẽ within the target plasma. Work supported by US DOE Grant DE-FG02-89ER53296.

A Source for Fuel Supply to a Fusion Reactor Core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Voronin, A. V.; Bakharev, N. N.; Gusev, V. K.; Novokhatskii, A. N.; Ponyaev, S. A.

2018-05-01

We present the results of studies of the plasma source based on the coaxial accelerator with the slothole channel geometry for plasma acceleration and working gas inlet into the accelerator via the electrodynamic valve. The plasma parameters at the output of the accelerator are measured. The slot-hole channel of the accelerator created higher jet pressure, as compared to the coaxial channel, especially at large distances from the source. The jet pressure reached 106 N/m2 at a distance of 0.7 m. The source created moderately pure plasma for a current below 80 kA. The density was (2.5-5) × 1022 m-3, which was higher than the density obtained with the coaxial gun.

21 CFR 606.121 - Container label.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... prepared in a system that might compromise sterility, the hour of expiration. (ii) If Source Plasma... collection date for each unit in the pool. (5) For Whole Blood, Plasma, Platelets, and partial units of Red... the container label for Source Plasma is not required to list the negative results of serological...

21 CFR 606.121 - Container label.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... prepared in a system that might compromise sterility, the hour of expiration. (ii) If Source Plasma... collection date for each unit in the pool. (5) For Whole Blood, Plasma, Platelets, and partial units of Red... the container label for Source Plasma is not required to list the negative results of serological...

Simulation of Mini-Magnetospheric Plasma Propulsion (M2P2) Interacting with an External Plasma Wind

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Winglee, R. M.; Euripides, P.; Ziemba, T.; Slough, J.; Giersch, L.

2003-01-01

Substantial progress has been made over the last year in the development of the laboratory Mini-Magnetospheric Plasma Propulsion (M2P2) prototype. The laboratory testing has shown that that the plasma can be produced at high neutral gas efficiency, at high temperatures (a few tens of eV) with excellent confinement up to the point where chamber wall interactions dominate the physics. This paper investigates the performance of the prototype as it is opposed by an external plasma acting as a surrogate for the solar wind. The experiments were performed in 5ft diameter by 6ft long vacuum chamber at the University of Washington. The solar wind source comprised of a 33 kWe arc jet attached to a 200 kWe inductively generated plasma source. The dual plasma sources allow the interaction to be studied for different power levels, shot duration and production method. It is shown that plasma from the solar wind source (SWS) is able to penetrate the field of the M2P2 magnetic when no plasma is present. With operation of the M2P2 plasma source at only 1.5 kWe, the penetration of the SWS even at the highest power of operation at 200 kWe is stopped. This deflection is shown to be greatly enhanced over that produced by the magnet alone. In addition it is shown that with the presence of the SWS, M2P2 is able to produce enhanced magnetized plasma production out to at least 10 magnet radii where the field strength is only marginally greater than the terrestrial field. The results are consistent with the initial predictions that kWe M2P2 systems would be able to deflect several hundred kWe plasma winds to produce enhanced propulsion for a spacecraft.

Development progresses of radio frequency ion source for neutral beam injector in fusion devices.

PubMed

Chang, D H; Jeong, S H; Kim, T S; Park, M; Lee, K W; In, S R

2014-02-01

A large-area RF (radio frequency)-driven ion source is being developed in Germany for the heating and current drive of an ITER device. Negative hydrogen ion sources are the major components of neutral beam injection systems in future large-scale fusion experiments such as ITER and DEMO. RF ion sources for the production of positive hydrogen (deuterium) ions have been successfully developed for the neutral beam heating systems at IPP (Max-Planck-Institute for Plasma Physics) in Germany. The first long-pulse ion source has been developed successfully with a magnetic bucket plasma generator including a filament heating structure for the first NBI system of the KSTAR tokamak. There is a development plan for an RF ion source at KAERI to extract the positive ions, which can be applied for the KSTAR NBI system and to extract the negative ions for future fusion devices such as the Fusion Neutron Source and Korea-DEMO. The characteristics of RF-driven plasmas and the uniformity of the plasma parameters in the test-RF ion source were investigated initially using an electrostatic probe.

Low energy spread ion source with a coaxial magnetic filter

DOEpatents

Leung, Ka-Ngo; Lee, Yung-Hee Yvette

2000-01-01

Multicusp ion sources are capable of producing ions with low axial energy spread which are necessary in applications such as ion projection lithography (IPL) and radioactive ion beam production. The addition of a radially extending magnetic filter consisting of a pair of permanent magnets to the multicusp source reduces the energy spread considerably due to the improvement in the uniformity of the axial plasma potential distribution in the discharge region. A coaxial multicusp ion source designed to further reduce the energy spread utilizes a cylindrical magnetic filter to achieve a more uniform axial plasma potential distribution. The coaxial magnetic filter divides the source chamber into an outer annular discharge region in which the plasma is produced and a coaxial inner ion extraction region into which the ions radially diffuse but from which ionizing electrons are excluded. The energy spread in the coaxial source has been measured to be 0.6 eV. Unlike other ion sources, the coaxial source has the capability of adjusting the radial plasma potential distribution and therefore the transverse ion temperature (or beam emittance).

Discontinuous model with semi analytical sheath interface for radio frequency plasma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miyashita, Masaru

2016-09-01

Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd. provide many products utilizing plasma. In this study, we focus on the Radio Frequency (RF) plasma source by interior antenna. The plasma source is expected to be high density and low metal contamination. However, the sputtering the antenna cover by high energy ion from sheath voltage still have been problematic. We have developed the new model which can calculate sheath voltage wave form in the RF plasma source for realistic calculation time. This model is discontinuous that electronic fluid equation in plasma connect to usual passion equation in antenna cover and chamber with semi analytical sheath interface. We estimate the sputtering distribution based on calculated sheath voltage waveform by this model, sputtering yield and ion energy distribution function (IEDF) model. The estimated sputtering distribution reproduce the tendency of experimental results.

Laboratory Observation of a Plasma-Flow-State Transition from Diverging to Stretching a Magnetic Nozzle.

PubMed

Takahashi, Kazunori; Ando, Akira

2017-06-02

An axial magnetic field induced by a plasma flow in a divergent magnetic nozzle is measured when injecting the plasma flow from a radio frequency (rf) plasma source located upstream of the nozzle. The source is operated with a pulsed rf power of 5 kW, and the high density plasma flow is sustained only for the initial ∼100  μsec of the discharge. The measurement shows a decrease in the axial magnetic field near the source exit, whereas an increase in the field is detected at the downstream side of the magnetic nozzle. These results demonstrate a spatial transition of the plasma-flow state from diverging to stretching the magnetic nozzle, where the importance of both the Alfvén and ion Mach numbers is shown.

Re-using blood products as an alternative supplement in the optimisation of clinical-grade adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cell culture

PubMed Central

Phetfong, J.; Tawonsawatruk, T.; Seenprachawong, K.; Srisarin, A.; Isarankura-Na-Ayudhya, C.

2017-01-01

Objectives Adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADMSCs) are a promising strategy for orthopaedic applications, particularly in bone repair. Ex vivo expansion of ADMSCs is required to obtain sufficient cell numbers. Xenogenic supplements should be avoided in order to minimise the risk of infections and immunological reactions. Human platelet lysate and human plasma may be an excellent material source for ADMSC expansion. In the present study, use of blood products after their recommended transfusion date to prepare human platelet lysate (HPL) and human plasma (Hplasma) was evaluated for in vitro culture expansion and osteogenesis of ADMSCs. Methods Human ADMSCs were cultured in medium supplemented with HPL, Hplasma and a combination of HPL and Hplasma (HPL+Hplasma). Characteristics of these ADMSCs, including osteogenesis, were evaluated in comparison with those cultured in fetal bovine serum (FBS). Results HPL and HPL+Hplasma had a significantly greater growth-promoting effect than FBS, while Hplasma exhibited a similar growth-promoting effect to that of FBS. ADMSCs cultured in HPL and/or Hplasma generated more colony-forming unit fibroblasts (CFU-F) than those cultured in FBS. After long-term culture, ADMSCs cultured in HPL and/or Hplasma showed reduced cellular senescence, retained typical cell phenotypes, and retained differentiation capacities into osteogenic and adipogenic lineages. Conclusion HPL and Hplasma prepared from blood products after their recommended transfusion date can be used as an alternative and effective source for large-scale ex vivo expansion of ADMSCs. Cite this article: J. Phetfong, T. Tawonsawatruk, K. Seenprachawong, A. Srisarin, C. Isarankura-Na-Ayudhya, A. Supokawej. Re-using blood products as an alternative supplement in the optimisation of clinical-grade adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cell culture. Bone Joint Res 2017;6:414–422. DOI: 10.1302/2046-3758.67.BJR-2016-0342.R1. PMID:28720606

Studies on the Extraction Region of the Type VI RF Driven H- Ion Source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McNeely, P.; Bandyopadhyay, M.; Franzen, P.; Heinemann, B.; Hu, C.; Kraus, W.; Riedl, R.; Speth, E.; Wilhelm, R.

2002-11-01

IPP Garching has spent several years developing a RF driven H- ion source intended to be an alternative to the current ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) reference design ion source. A RF driven source offers a number of advantages to ITER in terms of reduced costs and maintenance requirements. Although the RF driven ion source has shown itself to be competitive with a standard arc filament ion source for positive ions many questions still remain on the physics behind the production of the H- ion beam extracted from the source. With the improvements that have been implemented to the BATMAN (Bavarian Test Machine for Negative Ions) facility over the last two years it is now possible to study both the extracted ion beam and the plasma in the vicinity of the extraction grid in greater detail. This paper will show the effect of changing the extraction and acceleration voltage on both the current and shape of the beam as measured on the calorimeter some 1.5 m downstream from the source. The extraction voltage required to operate in the plasma limit is 3 kV. The perveance optimum for the extraction system was determined to be 2.2 x 10-6 A/V3/2 and occurs at 2.7 kV extraction voltage. The horizontal and vertical beam half widths vary as a function of the extracted ion current and the horizontal half width is generally smaller than the vertical. The effect of reducing the co-extracted electron current via plasma grid biasing on the H- current extractable and the beam profile from the source is shown. It is possible in the case of a silver contaminated plasma to reduce the co-extracted electron current to 20% of the initial value by applying a bias of 12 V. In the case where argon is present in the plasma, biasing is observed to have minimal effect on the beam half width but in a pure hydrogen plasma the beam half width increases as the bias voltage increases. New Langmuir probe studies that have been carried out parallel to the plasma grid (in the vicinity of the peak of the external magnetic filter field) and changes to source parameters as a function of power, and argon addition are reported. The behaviour of the electron density is different when the plasma is argon seeded showing a strong increase with RF power. The plasma potential is decreased by 2 V when argon is added to the plasma. The effect of the presence of unwanted silver sputtered from the Faraday screen by Ar+ ions on both the source performance and the plasma parameters is also presented. The silver dramatically downgraded source performance in terms of current density and produced an early saturation of current with applied RF power. Recently, collaboration was begun with the Technical University of Augsburg to perform spectroscopic measurements on the Type VI ion source. The final results of this analysis are not yet ready but some interesting initial observations on the gas temperature, disassociation degree and impurity ions will be presented.

The evolution of the storm-time ring current in response to different characteristics of the plasma source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lemon, C.; Chen, M.; O'Brien, T. P.; Toffoletto, F.; Sazykin, S.; Wolf, R.; Kumar, V.

2006-12-01

We present simulation results of the Rice Convection Model-Equilibrium (RCM-E) that test and compare the effect on the storm time ring current of varying the plasma sheet source population characteristics at 6.6 Re during magnetic storms. Previous work has shown that direct injection of ionospheric plasma into the ring current is not a significant source of ring current plasma, suggesting that the plasma sheet is the only source. However, storm time processes in the plasma sheet and inner magnetosphere are very complex, due in large part to the feedback interactions between the plasma distribution, magnetic field, and electric field. We are particularly interested in understanding the role of the plasma sheet entropy parameter (PV^{5/3}, where V=\\int ds/B) in determining the strength and distribution of the ring current in both the main and recovery phases of a storm. Plasma temperature and density can be measured from geosynchrorous orbiting satellites, and these are often used to provide boundary conditions for ring current simulations. However, magnetic field measurements in this region are less commonly available, and there is a relatively poor understanding of the interplay between the plasma and the magnetic field during magnetic storms. The entropy parameter is a quantity that incorporates both the plasma and the magnetic field, and understanding its role in the ring current injection and recovery is essential to describing the processes that are occuring during magnetic storms. The RCM-E includes the physics of feedback between the plasma and both the electric and magnetic fields, and is therefore a valuable tool for understanding these complex storm-time processes. By contrasting the effects of different plasma boundary conditions at geosynchronous orbit, we shed light on the physical processes involved in ring current injection and recovery.

A comparative study on the transdermal penetration effect of gaseous and aqueous plasma reactive species

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Xin; Gan, Lu; Ma, Mingyu; Zhang, Song; Liu, Jingjing; Chen, Hongxiang; Liu, Dawei; Lu, Xinpei

2018-02-01

To improve the depth of plasma active species in the skin, it is very important to develop skin disease treatment using plasma. In this article, an air plasma source was used to work directly with the skin of a mouse. A tortuous pathway, hair follicles, electroporation and a microneedle do not aid the transdermal delivery of gaseous plasma active species, therefore these gaseous plasma active species cannot penetrate mouse skin with a thickness of ~0.75 mm. The plasma activated water (PAW) produced by the air plasma source was used to study the transdermal penetration of the aqueous plasma activated species. This aqueous plasma activated species can penetrate the skin through hair follicles, intercellular and transcellular routes. The pH of the PAW did not affect the penetration efficiency of the aqueous plasma active species.

High current ion source

DOEpatents

Brown, Ian G.; MacGill, Robert A.; Galvin, James E.

1990-01-01

An ion source utilizing a cathode and anode for producing an electric arc therebetween. The arc is sufficient to vaporize a portion of the cathode to form a plasma. The plasma leaves the generation region and expands through another regon. The density profile of the plasma may be flattened using a magnetic field formed within a vacuum chamber. Ions are extracted from the plasma to produce a high current broad on beam.

FAR-TECH's Nanoparticle Plasma Jet System and its Application to Disruptions, Deep Fueling, and Diagnostics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thompson, J. R.; Bogatu, I. N.; Galkin, S. A.; Kim, J. S.

2012-10-01

Hyper-velocity plasma jets have potential applications in tokamaks for disruption mitigation, deep fueling and diagnostics. Pulsed power based solid-state sources and plasma accelerators offer advantages of rapid response and mass delivery at high velocities. Fast response is critical for some disruption mitigation scenario needs, while high velocity is especially important for penetration into tokamak plasma and its confining magnetic field, as in the case of deep fueling. FAR-TECH is developing the capability of producing large-mass hyper-velocity plasma jets. The prototype solid-state source has produced: 1) >8.4 mg of H2 gas only, and 2) >25 mg of H2 and >180 mg of C60 in a H2/C60 gas mixture. Using a coaxial plasma gun coupled to the source, we have successfully demonstrated the acceleration of composite H/C60 plasma jets, with momentum as high as 0.6 g.km/s, and containing an estimated C60 mass of ˜75 mg. We present the status of FAR-TECH's nanoparticle plasma jet system and discuss its application to disruptions, deep fueling, and diagnostics. A new TiH2/C60 solid-state source capable of generating significantly higher quantities of H2 and C60 in <0.5 ms will be discussed.

Langmuir probe study of a magnetically enhanced RF plasma source at pressures below 0.1 Pa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kousal, Jaroslav; Tichý, Milan; Šebek, Ondřej; Čechvala, Juraj; Biederman, Hynek

2011-08-01

The majority of plasma polymerization sources operate at pressures higher than 1 Pa. At these pressures most common deposition methods do not show significant directionality. One way of enhancing the directional effects is to decrease the working pressure to increase the mean free path of the reactive molecules. The plasma source used in this work was designed to study the plasma polymerization process at pressures below 0.1 Pa. The source consists of the classical radio frequency (RF) (13.56 MHz, capacitive coupled) tubular reactor enhanced by an external magnetic circuit. The working gas is introduced into the discharge by a capillary. This forms a relatively localized zone of higher pressure where the monomer is activated. Due to the magnetic field, the plasma is constricted near the axis of the reactor with nearly collisionless gas flow. The plasma parameters were obtained using a double Langmuir probe. Plasma density in the range ni = 1013-1016 m-3 was obtained in various parts of the discharge under typical conditions. The presence of the magnetic field led to the presence of relatively strong electric fields (103 V m-1) and relatively high electron energies up to several tens of eV in the plasma.

Enhanced performance for the analysis of prostaglandins and thromboxanes by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry using a new atmospheric pressure ionization source.

PubMed

Lubin, Arnaud; Geerinckx, Suzy; Bajic, Steve; Cabooter, Deirdre; Augustijns, Patrick; Cuyckens, Filip; Vreeken, Rob J

2016-04-01

Eicosanoids, including prostaglandins and thromboxanes are lipid mediators synthetized from polyunsaturated fatty acids. They play an important role in cell signaling and are often reported as inflammatory markers. LC-MS/MS is the technique of choice for the analysis of these compounds, often in combination with advanced sample preparation techniques. Here we report a head to head comparison between an electrospray ionization source (ESI) and a new atmospheric pressure ionization source (UniSpray). The performance of both interfaces was evaluated in various matrices such as human plasma, pig colon and mouse colon. The UniSpray source shows an increase in method sensitivity up to a factor 5. Equivalent to better linearity and repeatability on various matrices as well as an increase in signal intensity were observed in comparison to ESI. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Freezer anthropology: new uses for old blood.

PubMed Central

Merriwether, D A

1999-01-01

Archived blood fractions (plasma, settled red cells, white cells) have proved to be a rich and valuable source of DNA for human genetic studies. Large numbers of such samples were collected between 1960 and the present for protein and blood group studies, many of which are languishing in freezers or have already been discarded. More are discarded each year because the usefulness of these samples is not widely understood. Data from DNA derived from 10-35-year-old blood samples have been used to address the peopling of the New World and of the Pacific. Mitochondrial DNA haplotypes from studies using this source DNA support a single wave of migration into the New World (or a single source population for the New World), and that Mongolia was the likely source of the founding population. Data from Melanesia have shown that Polynesians are recent immigrants into the Pacific and did not arise from Melanesia. PMID:10091252

Method for generating extreme ultraviolet with mather-type plasma accelerators for use in Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hassanein, Ahmed; Konkashbaev, Isak

A device and method for generating extremely short-wave ultraviolet electromagnetic wave uses two intersecting plasma beams generated by two plasma accelerators. The intersection of the two plasma beams emits electromagnetic radiation and in particular radiation in the extreme ultraviolet wavelength. In the preferred orientation two axially aligned counter streaming plasmas collide to produce an intense source of electromagnetic radiation at the 13.5 nm wavelength. The Mather type plasma accelerators can utilize tin, or lithium covered electrodes. Tin, lithium or xenon can be used as the photon emitting gas source.

Towards a better comprehension of plasma formation and heating in high performances electron cyclotron resonance ion sources (invited)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mascali, D.; Gammino, S.; Celona, L.

2012-02-15

Further improvements of electron cyclotron resonance ion sources (ECRIS) output currents and average charge state require a deep understanding of electron and ion dynamics in the plasma. This paper will discuss the most recent advances about modeling of non-classical evidences like the sensitivity of electron energy distribution function to the magnetic field detuning, the influence of plasma turbulences on electron heating and ion confinement, the coupling between electron and ion dynamics. All these issues have in common the non-homogeneous distribution of the plasma inside the source: the abrupt density drop at the resonance layer regulates the heating regimes (from collectivemore » to turbulent), the beam formation mechanism and emittance. Possible means to boost the performances of future ECRIS will be proposed. In particular, the use of Bernstein waves, in preliminary experiments performed at Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS) on MDIS (microwave discharge ion sources)-type sources, has permitted to sustain largely overdense plasmas enhancing the warm electron temperature, which will make possible in principle the construction of sources for high intensity multicharged ions beams with simplified magnetic structures.« less

Present status of numerical modeling of hydrogen negative ion source plasmas and its comparison with experiments: Japanese activities and their collaboration with experimental groups

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hatayama, A.; Nishioka, S.; Nishida, K.; Mattei, S.; Lettry, J.; Miyamoto, K.; Shibata, T.; Onai, M.; Abe, S.; Fujita, S.; Yamada, S.; Fukano, A.

2018-06-01

The present status of kinetic modeling of particle dynamics in hydrogen negative ion (H‑) source plasmas and their comparisons with experiments are reviewed and discussed with some new results. The main focus is placed on the following topics, which are important for the research and development of H‑ sources for intense and high-quality H‑ ion beams: (i) effects of non-equilibrium features of electron energy distribution function on volume and surface H‑ production, (ii) the origin of the spatial non-uniformity in giant multi-cusp arc-discharge H‑ sources, (iii) capacitive to inductive (E to H) mode transition in radio frequency-inductively coupled plasma H‑ sources and (iv) extraction physics of H‑ ions and beam optics, especially the present understanding of the meniscus formation in strongly electronegative plasmas (so-called ion–ion plasmas) and its effect on beam optics. For these topics, mainly Japanese modeling activities, and their domestic and international collaborations with experimental studies, are introduced with some examples showing how models have been improved and to what extent the modeling studies can presently contribute to improving the source performance. Close collaboration between experimental and modeling activities is indispensable for the validation/improvement of the modeling and its contribution to the source design/development.

Ptychographic imaging with partially coherent plasma EUV sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bußmann, Jan; Odstrčil, Michal; Teramoto, Yusuke; Juschkin, Larissa

2017-12-01

We report on high-resolution lens-less imaging experiments based on ptychographic scanning coherent diffractive imaging (CDI) method employing compact plasma sources developed for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography applications. Two kinds of discharge sources were used in our experiments: a hollow-cathode-triggered pinch plasma source operated with oxygen and for the first time a laser-assisted discharge EUV source with a liquid tin target. Ptychographic reconstructions of different samples were achieved by applying constraint relaxation to the algorithm. Our ptychography algorithms can handle low spatial coherence and broadband illumination as well as compensate for the residual background due to plasma radiation in the visible spectral range. Image resolution down to 100 nm is demonstrated even for sparse objects, and it is limited presently by the sample structure contrast and the available coherent photon flux. We could extract material properties by the reconstruction of the complex exit-wave field, gaining additional information compared to electron microscopy or CDI with longer-wavelength high harmonic laser sources. Our results show that compact plasma-based EUV light sources of only partial spatial and temporal coherence can be effectively used for lens-less imaging applications. The reported methods may be applied in combination with reflectometry and scatterometry for high-resolution EUV metrology.

A rapid method for selecting suitable animal species for studying pathogen interactions with plasma protein ligands in vivo.

PubMed

Naudin, Clément; Schumski, Ariane; Salo-Ahen, Outi M H; Herwald, Heiko; Smeds, Emanuel

2017-05-01

Species tropism constitutes a serious problem for developing relevant animal models of infection. Human pathogens can express virulence factors that show specific selectivity to human proteins, while their affinity for orthologs from other species can vary significantly. Suitable animal species must be used to analyse whether virulence factors are potential targets for drug development. We developed an assay that rapidly predicts applicable animal species for studying virulence factors binding plasma proteins. We used two well-characterized Staphylococcus aureus proteins, SSL7 and Efb, to develop an ELISA-based inhibition assay using plasma from different animal species. The interaction between SSL7 and human C5 and the binding of Efb to human fibrinogen and human C3 was studied. Affinity experiments and Western blot analyses were used to validate the assay. Human, monkey and cat plasma interfered with binding of SSL7 to human C5. Binding of Efb to human fibrinogen was blocked in human, monkey, gerbil and pig plasma, while human, monkey, gerbil, rabbit, cat and guinea pig plasma inhibited the binding of Efb to human C3. These results emphasize the importance of choosing correct animal models, and thus, our approach is a rapid and cost-effective method that can be used to prevent unnecessary animal experiments. © 2017 The Authors. Microbial Biotechnology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd and Society for Applied Microbiology.

Effect of source frequency and pulsing on the SiO2 etching characteristics of dual-frequency capacitive coupled plasma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Hoe Jun; Jeon, Min Hwan; Mishra, Anurag Kumar; Kim, In Jun; Sin, Tae Ho; Yeom, Geun Young

2015-01-01

A SiO2 layer masked with an amorphous carbon layer (ACL) has been etched in an Ar/C4F8 gas mixture with dual frequency capacitively coupled plasmas under variable frequency (13.56-60 MHz)/pulsed rf source power and 2 MHz continuous wave (CW) rf bias power, the effects of the frequency and pulsing of the source rf power on the SiO2 etch characteristics were investigated. By pulsing the rf power, an increased SiO2 etch selectivity was observed with decreasing SiO2 etch rate. However, when the rf power frequency was increased, not only a higher SiO2 etch rate but also higher SiO2 etch selectivity was observed for both CW and pulse modes. A higher CF2/F ratio and lower electron temperature were observed for both a higher source frequency mode and a pulsed plasma mode. Therefore, when the C 1s binding states of the etched SiO2 surfaces were investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), the increase of C-Fx bonding on the SiO2 surface was observed for a higher source frequency operation similar to a pulsed plasma condition indicating the increase of SiO2 etch selectivity over the ACL. The increase of the SiO2 etch rate with increasing etch selectivity for the higher source frequency operation appears to be related to the increase of the total plasma density with increasing CF2/F ratio in the plasma. The SiO2 etch profile was also improved not only by using the pulsed plasma but also by increasing the source frequency.

Comparative lytic efficacy of rt-PA and ultrasound in porcine versus human clots

PubMed Central

Shekhar, Himanshu; Holland, Christy K.

2017-01-01

Introduction Porcine thrombi are employed routinely in preclinical models of ischemic stroke. In this study, we examined the differential lytic susceptibility of porcine and human whole blood clots with and without the use of microbubbles and ultrasound (US) as an adjuvant. Materials and methods An in vitro system equipped with time-lapse microscopy was used to evaluate recombinant tissue-plasminogen activator (rt-PA) lysis of porcine and human clots in the same species or cross species plasma. Human and porcine whole blood clots were treated with rt-PA and an echo contrast agent, Definity®, and exposed to intermittent 120 kHz US. Results and conclusions The rt-PA lytic efficacy observed for porcine clots in porcine plasma was 22 times lower than for human clots in human plasma reported previously. Further, porcine clots did not exhibit increased lysis with adjuvant Definity® and US exposure. However, the rt-PA lytic susceptibility of the porcine clots in human plasma was similar to that of human clots in human plasma. Human clots perfused with porcine plasma did not respond to rt-PA, but adjuvant use of Definity® and US enhanced lysis. These results reveal considerable differences in lytic susceptibility of porcine clots and human clots to rt-PA. The use of porcine clot models to test new human thrombolytic therapies may necessitate modulation of coagulation and thrombolytic factors to reflect human hemostasis accurately. PMID:28545055

Ways to improve the efficiency and reliability of radio frequency driven negative ion sources for fusion.

PubMed

Kraus, W; Briefi, S; Fantz, U; Gutmann, P; Doerfler, J

2014-02-01

Large RF driven negative hydrogen ion sources are being developed at IPP Garching for the future neutral beam injection system of ITER. The overall power efficiency of these sources is low, because for the RF power supply self-excited generators are utilized and the plasma is generated in small cylindrical sources ("drivers") and expands into the source main volume. At IPP experiments to reduce the primary power and the RF power required for the plasma production are performed in two ways: The oscillator generator of the prototype source has been replaced by a transistorized RF transmitter and two alternative driver concepts, a spiral coil, in which the field is concentrated by ferrites, which omits the losses by plasma expansion and a helicon source are being tested.

SXTF Description: AEDC and NASA Candidate Sites.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-08-29

the PRS, this debris shield will have to withstand a rather severe plasma pulse and attendant shock fronts. The actual amount of material debris blown...multipurpose shield poses a particular problem in that the explosive nature of the plasma source will probably destroy at least portions of thedebris...source Plasma radiator Multiple bremsstrahlung source /kABSTRAC T iConftnue on roverse side It n- *ce4 aend Id’nttl’ I h’ block ns-nberl Modifications

The Development of Novel Recombinant Human Gelatins as Replacements for Animal-Derived Gelatin in Pharmaceutical Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olsen, David; Chang, Robert; Williams, Kim E.; Polarek, James W.

We have developed a recombinant expression system to produce a series of novel recombinant human gelatins that can substitute for animal sourced gelatin preparations currently used in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical applications. This system allows the production of human sequence gelatins, or, if desired, gelatins from any other species depending on the availability of the cloned gene. The gelatins produced with this recombinant system are of defined molecular weight, unlike the animal-sourced gelatins, which consist of numerous polypeptides of varying size. The fermentation and purification process used to prepare these recombinant gelatins does not use any human- or animal-derived components and thus this recombinant material should be free from viruses and agents that cause transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. The recombinant gelatins exhibit lot-to-lot reproducibility and we have performed extensive analytical testing on them. We have demonstrated the utility of these novel gelatins as biological stabilizers and plasma expanders, and we have shown they possess qualities that are important in applications where gel formation is critical. Finally, we provide examples of how our system allows the engineering of these recombinant gelatins to optimize the production process.

Human absorption and metabolism of oleuropein and hydroxytyrosol ingested as olive (Olea europaea L.) leaf extract.

PubMed

de Bock, Martin; Thorstensen, Eric B; Derraik, José G B; Henderson, Harold V; Hofman, Paul L; Cutfield, Wayne S

2013-11-01

Phenolic compounds derived from the olive plant (Olea europaea L.), particularly hydroxytyrosol and oleuropein, have many beneficial effects in vitro. Olive leaves are the richest source of olive phenolic compounds, and olive leaf extract (OLE) is now a popular nutraceutical taken either as liquid or capsules. To quantify the bioavailability and metabolism of oleuropein and hydroxytyrosol when taken as OLE, nine volunteers (five males) aged 42.8 ± 7.4 years were randomized to receive either capsulated or liquid OLE as a single lower (51.1 mg oleuropein, 9.7 mg hydroxytyrosol) or higher (76.6 mg oleuropein, 14.5 mg hydroxytyrosol) dose, and then the opposite strength (but same formulation) a week later. Plasma and urine samples were collected at fixed intervals for 24 h post-ingestion. Phenolic content was analyzed by LC-ESI-MS/MS. Conjugated metabolites of hydroxytyrosol were the primary metabolites recovered in plasma and urine after OLE ingestion. Peak oleuropein concentrations in plasma were greater following ingestion of liquid than capsule preparations (0.47 versus 2.74 ng/mL; p = 0.004), but no such effect was observed for peak concentrations of conjugated (sulfated and glucuronidated) hydroxytyrosol (p = 0.94). However, the latter peak was reached earlier with liquid preparation (93 versus 64 min; p = 0.031). There was a gender effect on the bioavailability of phenolic compounds, with males displaying greater plasma area under the curve for conjugated hydroxytyrosol (11,600 versus 2550 ng/mL; p = 0.048). All conjugated hydroxytyrosol metabolites were recovered in the urine within 8 h. There was wide inter-individual variation. OLE effectively delivers oleuropein and hydroxytrosol metabolites to plasma in humans. © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Development and validation of a rapid and sensitive UPLC-MS/MS method for determination of uracil and dihydrouracil in human plasma.

PubMed

Jacobs, Bart A W; Rosing, Hilde; de Vries, Niels; Meulendijks, Didier; Henricks, Linda M; Schellens, Jan H M; Beijnen, Jos H

2016-07-15

Quantification of the endogenous dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) substrate uracil (U) and the reaction product dihydrouracil (UH2) in plasma might be suitable for identification of patients at risk of fluoropyrimidine-induced toxicity as a result of DPD deficiency. In this paper, we describe the development and validation of a rapid and sensitive ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) assay for quantification of U and UH2 in human plasma. Analytes were extracted by protein precipitation, chromatographically separated on an Acquity UPLC(®) HSS T3 column with gradient elution and analyzed with a tandem mass spectrometer equipped with an electrospray ionization source. U was quantified in the negative ion mode and UH2 in the positive ion mode. Stable isotopes for U and UH2 were used as internal standards. Total chromatographic run time was 5min. Validated concentration ranges for U and UH2 were from 1 to 100ng/mL and 10 to 1000ng/mL, respectively. Inter-assay bias and inter-assay precision for U were within ±2.8% and ≤12.4%. For UH2, inter-assay bias and inter-assay precision were within ±2.9% and ≤7.2%. Adequate stability of U and UH2 in dry extract, final extract, stock solution and plasma was demonstrated. Stability of U and UH2 in whole blood was only satisfactory when stored up to 4hours at 2-8°C, but not at ambient temperatures. An accurate, precise and sensitive UPLC-MS/MS assay for quantification of U and UH2 in plasma was developed. This assay is now applied to support clinical studies with fluoropyrimidine drugs. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Choline intake and genetic polymorphisms influence choline metabolite concentrations in human breast milk and plasma123

PubMed Central

Fischer, Leslie M; da Costa, Kerry Ann; Galanko, Joseph; Sha, Wei; Stephenson, Brigitte; Vick, Julie; Zeisel, Steven H

2010-01-01

Background: Choline is essential for infant nutrition, and breast milk is a rich source of this nutrient. Common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) change dietary requirements for choline intake. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine whether total choline intake and/or SNPs influence concentrations of choline and its metabolites in human breast milk and plasma. Design: We gave a total of 103 pregnant women supplemental choline or a placebo from 18 wk gestation to 45 d postpartum and genotyped the women for 370 common SNPs. At 45 d postpartum, we measured choline metabolite concentrations in breast milk and plasma and assessed the dietary intake of choline by using a 3-d food record. Results: On average, lactating women in our study ate two-thirds of the recommended intake for choline (Adequate Intake = 550 mg choline/d). Dietary choline intake (no supplement) correlated with breast-milk phosphatidylcholine and plasma choline concentrations. A supplement further increased breast-milk choline, betaine, and phosphocholine concentrations and increased plasma choline and betaine concentrations. We identified 5 SNPs in MTHFR that altered the slope of the intake–metabolite concentration relations, and we identified 2 SNPs in PEMT that shifted these curves upward. Individuals who shared sets of common SNPs were outliers in plots of intake–metabolite concentration curves; we suggest that these SNPs should be further investigated to determine how they alter choline metabolism. Conclusion: Total intake of choline and genotype can influence the concentrations of choline and its metabolites in the breast milk and blood of lactating women and thereby affect the amount of choline available to the developing infant. This study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00678925. PMID:20534746

High Blood Caffeine Levels in MCI Linked to Lack of Progression to Dementia

PubMed Central

Cao, Chuanhai; Loewenstein, David A.; Lin, Xiaoyang; Zhang, Chi; Wang, Li; Duara, Ranjan; Wu, Yougui; Giannini, Alessandra; Bai, Ge; Cai, Jianfeng; Greig, Maria; Schofield, Elizabeth; Ashok, Raj; Small, Brent; Potter, Huntington; Arendash, Gary W.

2017-01-01

Although both human epidemiologic and animal model studies have suggested that caffeine/coffee protects against Alzheimer’s disease, direct human evidence for this premise has been lacking. In the present case-control study, two separate cohorts consisting of 124 total individuals (65–88 years old) were cognitively assessed and a blood sample taken for caffeine/biomarker analysis. Subjects were then monitored for cognitive status over the ensuing 2–4 year period to determine the extent to which initial plasma caffeine/biomarkers levels would be predictive of changes in cognitive status. Plasma caffeine levels at study onset were substantially lower (−51%) in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) subjects who later progressed to dementia (MCI→DEM) compared to levels in stable MCI subjects (MCI→MCI). Moreover, none of the MCI→DEM subjects had initial blood caffeine levels that were above a critical level of 1200 ng/ml, while half of stable MCI→MCI subjects had blood caffeine levels higher than that critical level. Thus, plasma caffeine levels greater than 1200 ng/ml (≈6 µM) in MCI subjects were associated with no conversion to dementia during the ensuing 2–4 year follow-up period. Among the 11 cytokines measured in plasma, three of them (GCSF, IL-10, and IL-6) were decreased in MCI→DEM subjects, but not in stable MCI→MCI subjects with high plasma caffeine levels. Coffee would appear to be the major or perhaps only source of caffeine for such stable MCI patients. This case-control study provides the first direct evidence that caffeine/coffee intake is associated with a reduced risk of dementia or delayed onset, particularly for those who already have MCI. PMID:22430531

miRDis: a Web tool for endogenous and exogenous microRNA discovery based on deep-sequencing data analysis.

PubMed

Zhang, Hanyuan; Vieira Resende E Silva, Bruno; Cui, Juan

2018-05-01

Small RNA sequencing is the most widely used tool for microRNA (miRNA) discovery, and shows great potential for the efficient study of miRNA cross-species transport, i.e., by detecting the presence of exogenous miRNA sequences in the host species. Because of the increased appreciation of dietary miRNAs and their far-reaching implication in human health, research interests are currently growing with regard to exogenous miRNAs bioavailability, mechanisms of cross-species transport and miRNA function in cellular biological processes. In this article, we present microRNA Discovery (miRDis), a new small RNA sequencing data analysis pipeline for both endogenous and exogenous miRNA detection. Specifically, we developed and deployed a Web service that supports the annotation and expression profiling data of known host miRNAs and the detection of novel miRNAs, other noncoding RNAs, and the exogenous miRNAs from dietary species. As a proof-of-concept, we analyzed a set of human plasma sequencing data from a milk-feeding study where 225 human miRNAs were detected in the plasma samples and 44 show elevated expression after milk intake. By examining the bovine-specific sequences, data indicate that three bovine miRNAs (bta-miR-378, -181* and -150) are present in human plasma possibly because of the dietary uptake. Further evaluation based on different sets of public data demonstrates that miRDis outperforms other state-of-the-art tools in both detection and quantification of miRNA from either animal or plant sources. The miRDis Web server is available at: http://sbbi.unl.edu/miRDis/index.php.

Choline and Choline Metabolite Patterns and Associations in Blood and Milk during Lactation in Dairy Cows

PubMed Central

Artegoitia, Virginia M.; Middleton, Jesse L.; Harte, Federico M.; Campagna, Shawn R.; de Veth, Michael J.

2014-01-01

Milk and dairy products are an important source of choline, a nutrient essential for human health. Infant formula derived from bovine milk contains a number of metabolic forms of choline, all contribute to the growth and development of the newborn. At present, little is known about the factors that influence the concentrations of choline metabolites in milk. The objectives of this study were to characterize and then evaluate associations for choline and its metabolites in blood and milk through the first 37 weeks of lactation in the dairy cow. Milk and blood samples from twelve Holstein cows were collected in early, mid and late lactation and analyzed for acetylcholine, free choline, betaine, glycerophosphocholine, lysophosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylcholine, phosphocholine and sphingomyelin using hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, and quantified using stable isotope-labeled internal standards. Total choline concentration in plasma, which was almost entirely phosphatidylcholine, increased 10-times from early to late lactation (1305 to 13,535 µmol/L). In milk, phosphocholine was the main metabolite in early lactation (492 µmol/L), which is a similar concentration to that found in human milk, however, phosphocholine concentration decreased exponentially through lactation to 43 µmol/L in late lactation. In contrast, phosphatidylcholine was the main metabolite in mid and late lactation (188 µmol/L and 659 µmol/L, respectively), with the increase through lactation positively correlated with phosphatidylcholine in plasma (R 2 = 0.78). Unlike previously reported with human milk we found no correlation between plasma free choline concentration and milk choline metabolites. The changes in pattern of phosphocholine and phosphatidylcholine in milk through lactation observed in the bovine suggests that it is possible to manufacture infant formula that more closely matches these metabolites profile in human milk. PMID:25157578

Laser-plasma extreme ultraviolet and soft X-ray sources based on a double stream gas puff target: interaction of the radiation pulses with matter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bartnik, A.

2015-06-01

In this work a review of investigations concerning interaction of intense extreme ultraviolet (EUV) and soft X-ray (SXR) pulses with matter is presented. The investigations were performed using laser-produced plasma (LPP) EUV/SXR sources based on a double stream gas puff target. The sources are equipped with dedicated collectors allowing for efficient focusing of the EUV/SXR radiation pulses. Intense radiation in a wide spectral range, as well as a quasi-monochromatic radiation can be produced. In the paper different kinds of LPP EUV/SXR sources developed in the Institute of Optoelectronics, Military University of Technology are described. Radiation intensities delivered by the sources are sufficient for different kinds of interaction experiments including EUV/SXR induced ablation, surface treatment, EUV fluorescence or photoionized plasma creation. A brief review of the main results concerning this kind of experiments performed by author of the paper are presented. However, since the LPP sources cannot compete with large scale X-ray sources like synchrotrons, free electron lasers or high energy density plasma sources, it was indicated that some investigations not requiring extreme irradiation parameters can be performed using the small scale installations. Some results, especially concerning low temperature photoionized plasmas are very unique and could be hardly obtained using the large facilities.

Development of the front end test stand and vessel for extraction and source plasma analyses negative hydrogen ion sources at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory.

PubMed

Lawrie, S R; Faircloth, D C; Letchford, A P; Perkins, M; Whitehead, M O; Wood, T; Gabor, C; Back, J

2014-02-01

The ISIS pulsed spallation neutron and muon facility at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL) in the UK uses a Penning surface plasma negative hydrogen ion source. Upgrade options for the ISIS accelerator system demand a higher current, lower emittance beam with longer pulse lengths from the injector. The Front End Test Stand is being constructed at RAL to meet the upgrade requirements using a modified ISIS ion source. A new 10% duty cycle 25 kV pulsed extraction power supply has been commissioned and the first meter of 3 MeV radio frequency quadrupole has been delivered. Simultaneously, a Vessel for Extraction and Source Plasma Analyses is under construction in a new laboratory at RAL. The detailed measurements of the plasma and extracted beam characteristics will allow a radical overhaul of the transport optics, potentially yielding a simpler source configuration with greater output and lifetime.

Electron temperature profiles in axial field 2.45 GHz ECR ion source with a ceramic chamber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abe, K.; Tamura, R.; Kasuya, T.; Wada, M.

2017-08-01

An array of electrostatic probes was arranged on the plasma electrode of a 2.45 GHz microwave driven axial magnetic filter field type negative hydrogen (H-) ion source to clarify the spatial plasma distribution near the electrode. The measured spatial distribution of electron temperature indicated the lower temperature near the extraction hole of the plasma electrode corresponding to the effectiveness of the axial magnetic filter field geometry. When the ratio of electron saturation current to the ion saturation current was plotted as a function of position, the obtained distribution showed a higher ratio near the hydrogen gas inlet through which ground state hydrogen molecules are injected into the source. Though the efficiency in producing H- ions is smaller for a 2.45 GHz source than a source operated at 14 GHz, it gives more volume to measure spatial distributions of various plasma parameters to understand fundamental processes that are influential on H- production in this type of ion sources.

Performance of a permanent-magnet helicon source at 27 and 13 MHz

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Francis F.

2012-09-15

A small helicon source is used to create dense plasma and inject it into a large chamber. A permanent magnet is used for the dc magnetic field (B-field), making the system very simple and compact. Though theory predicts that better antenna coupling will occur at 27.12 MHz, it was found that 13.56 MHz surprisingly gives even higher density due to practical effects not included in theory. Complete density n and electron temperature T{sub e} profiles are measured at three distances below the source. The plasma inside the source is also measured with a special probe, even under the antenna. Themore » density there is lower than expected because the plasma created is immediately ejected, filling the experimental chamber. The advantage of helicons over inductively coupled plasmas (with no B-field) increases with RF power. At high B-fields, edge ionization by the Trivelpiece-Gould mode can be seen. These results are useful for design of multiple-tube, large-area helicon sources for plasma etching and deposition because problems are encountered which cannot be foreseen by theory alone.« less

ECR ion source with electron gun

DOEpatents

Xie, Zu Q.; Lyneis, Claude M.

1993-01-01

An Advanced Electron Cyclotron Resonance ion source (10) having an electron gun (52) for introducing electrons into the plasma chamber (18) of the ion source (10). The ion source (10) has a injection enclosure (12) and a plasma chamber tank (14). The plasma chamber (18) is defined by a plurality of longitudinal magnets (16). The electron gun (52) injects electrons axially into the plasma chamber (18) such that ionization within the plasma chamber (18) occurs in the presence of the additional electrons produced by the electron gun (52). The electron gun (52) has a cathode (116) for emitting electrons therefrom which is heated by current supplied from an AC power supply (96) while bias potential is provided by a bias power supply (118). A concentric inner conductor (60) and Outer conductor (62) carry heating current to a carbon chuck (104) and carbon pusher (114) Which hold the cathode (116) in place and also heat the cathode (16). In the Advanced Electron Cyclotron Resonance ion source (10), the electron gun (52) replaces the conventional first stage used in prior art electron cyclotron resonance ion generators.

Energization of the Ring Current through Convection of Substorm Enhancements of the Plasma Sheet Source.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Menz, A.; Kistler, L. M.; Mouikis, C.; Spence, H. E.; Henderson, M. G.; Matsui, H.

2017-12-01

It has been shown that electric field strength and night-side plasma sheet density are the two best predictors of the adiabatic energy gain of the ring current during geomagnetic storms (Liemohn and Khazanov, 2005). While H+ dominates the ring current during quiet times, O+ can contribute substantially during geomagnetic storms. Substorm activity provides a mechanism to enhance the energy density of O+ in the plasma sheet during geomagnetic storms, which is then convected adiabatically into the inner-magnetosphere. Using the Van Allen Probes data in the the plasma sheet source region (defined as L>5.5 during storms) and the inner magnetosphere, along with LANL-GEO data to identify substorm injection times, we show that adiabatic convection of O+ enhancements in the source region can explain the observed enhancements in the inner magnetosphere. We use the UNH-IMEF electric field model to calculate drift times from the source region to the inner magnetosphere to test whether enhancements in the inner-magnetosphere can be explained by dipolarization driven enhancements in the plasma sheet source hours before.

Plasma generating apparatus for large area plasma processing

DOEpatents

Tsai, C.C.; Gorbatkin, S.M.; Berry, L.A.

1991-07-16

A plasma generating apparatus for plasma processing applications is based on a permanent magnet line-cusp plasma confinement chamber coupled to a compact single-coil microwave waveguide launcher. The device creates an electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma in the launcher and a second ECR plasma is created in the line cusps due to a 0.0875 tesla magnetic field in that region. Additional special magnetic field configuring reduces the magnetic field at the substrate to below 0.001 tesla. The resulting plasma source is capable of producing large-area (20-cm diam), highly uniform (.+-.5%) ion beams with current densities above 5 mA/cm[sup 2]. The source has been used to etch photoresist on 5-inch diam silicon wafers with good uniformity. 3 figures.

Plasma generating apparatus for large area plasma processing

DOEpatents

Tsai, Chin-Chi; Gorbatkin, Steven M.; Berry, Lee A.

1991-01-01

A plasma generating apparatus for plasma processing applications is based on a permanent magnet line-cusp plasma confinement chamber coupled to a compact single-coil microwave waveguide launcher. The device creates an electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma in the launcher and a second ECR plasma is created in the line cusps due to a 0.0875 tesla magnetic field in that region. Additional special magnetic field configuring reduces the magnetic field at the substrate to below 0.001 tesla. The resulting plasma source is capable of producing large-area (20-cm diam), highly uniform (.+-.5%) ion beams with current densities above 5 mA/cm.sup.2. The source has been used to etch photoresist on 5-inch diam silicon wafers with good uniformity.

Application of Atmospheric-Pressure Microwave Line Plasma for Low Temperature Process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suzuki, Haruka; Nakano, Suguru; Itoh, Hitoshi; Sekine, Makoto; Hori, Masaru; Toyoda, Hirotaka

2015-09-01

Atmospheric pressure (AP) plasmas have been given much attention because of its high cost benefit and a variety of possibilities for industrial applications. In various kinds of plasma production technique, pulsed-microwave discharge plasma using slot antenna is attractive due to its ability of high-density and stable plasma production. In this plasma source, however, size of the plasma has been limited up to a few cm in length due to standing wave inside a waveguide. To solve this, we have proposed a newly-developed AP microwave plasma source that utilizes not standing wave but travelling wave. By using this plasma source, spatially-uniform AP line plasma with 40 cm in length was realized by pure helium discharge in 60 cm slot and with nitrogen gas additive of 1%. Furthermore, gas temperature as low as 400 K was realized in this device. In this study, as an example of low temperature processes, hydrophilic treatment of PET films was performed. Processing speed increased with pulse frequency and a water contact angle of ~20° was easily obtained within 5 s with no thermal damage to the substrate. To evaluate treatment-uniformity of long line length, PET films were treated by 90 cm slot-antenna plasma and uniform treatment performance was confirmed.

High electronegativity multi-dipolar electron cyclotron resonance plasma source for etching by negative ions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stamate, E.; Draghici, M.

2012-04-15

A large area plasma source based on 12 multi-dipolar ECR plasma cells arranged in a 3 x 4 matrix configuration was built and optimized for silicon etching by negative ions. The density ratio of negative ions to electrons has exceeded 300 in Ar/SF{sub 6} gas mixture when a magnetic filter was used to reduce the electron temperature to about 1.2 eV. Mass spectrometry and electrostatic probe were used for plasma diagnostics. The new source is free of density jumps and instabilities and shows a very good stability for plasma potential, and the dominant negative ion species is F{sup -}. Themore » magnetic field in plasma volume is negligible and there is no contamination by filaments. The etching rate by negative ions measured in Ar/SF{sub 6}/O{sub 2} mixtures was almost similar with that by positive ions reaching 700 nm/min.« less

Plasma particle sources due to interactions with neutrals in a turbulent scrape-off layer of a toroidally confined plasma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thrysøe, A. S.; Løiten, M.; Madsen, J.; Naulin, V.; Nielsen, A. H.; Rasmussen, J. Juul

2018-03-01

The conditions in the edge and scrape-off layer (SOL) of magnetically confined plasmas determine the overall performance of the device, and it is of great importance to study and understand the mechanics that drive transport in those regions. If a significant amount of neutral molecules and atoms is present in the edge and SOL regions, those will influence the plasma parameters and thus the plasma confinement. In this paper, it is displayed how neutrals, described by a fluid model, introduce source terms in a plasma drift-fluid model due to inelastic collisions. The resulting source terms are included in a four-field drift-fluid model, and it is shown how an increasing neutral particle density in the edge and SOL regions influences the plasma particle transport across the last-closed-flux-surface. It is found that an appropriate gas puffing rate allows for the edge density in the simulation to be self-consistently maintained due to ionization of neutrals in the confined region.

Microwave Interferometric Density Measurements of a Pulsed Helicon Source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scime, Ethan; Scime, Earl; Thompson, Derek

2017-10-01

The intense rf environment of a helicon plasma source is problematic for electrostatic probe measurements of plasma density, particularly at low neutral pressures. Here we present measurements of the line-integrated plasma density in a helicon plasma source using a multi-frequency (20-40 GHz) microwave interferometer. The design of the diagnostic and the data acquisition system are presented, as well as a comparison to density profiles obtained with a moveable electrostatic probe. A parametric fit to the probe profile measurements is used to determine the peak density from the microwave density measurements. This work supported by U.S. National Science Foundation Grant No. PHY-1360278.

High current plasma electron emitter

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fiksel, G.; Almagri, A.F.; Craig, D.

1995-07-01

A high current plasma electron emitter based on a miniature plasma source has been developed. The emitting plasma is created by a pulsed high current gas discharge. The electron emission current is 1 kA at 300 V at the pulse duration of 10 ms. The prototype injector described in this paper will be used for a 20 kA electrostatic current injection experiment in the Madison Symmetric Torus (MST) reversed-field pinch. The source will be replicated in order to attain this total current requirement. The source has a simple design and has proven very reliable in operation. A high emission current,more » small size (3.7 cm in diameter), and low impurity generation make the source suitable for a variety of fusion and technological applications.« less

Radiofrequency antenna for suppression of parasitic discharges in a helicon plasma thruster experiment.

PubMed

Takahashi, Kazunori

2012-08-01

A radiofrequency (rf) antenna for helicon plasma thruster experiments is developed and tested using a permanent magnets helicon plasma source immersed in a vacuum chamber. A magnetic nozzle is provided by permanent magnets arrays and an argon plasma is produced by a 13.56 MHz radiofrequency helicon-wave or inductively-coupled discharge. A parasitic discharge outside the source tube is successfully suppressed by covering the rf antenna with a ceramic ring and a grounded shield; a decrease in the ion saturation current of a Langmuir probe located outside the source tube is observed and the ion saturation current on axis increases simultaneously, compared with the case of a standard uncovered rf antenna. It is also demonstrated that the covered antenna can yield stable operation of the source.

Mars Spark Source Prototype Developed

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eichenberg, Dennis J.; Lindamood, Glenn R.; VanderWal, Randall L.; Weiland, Karen J.

2000-01-01

The Mars Spark Source Prototype (MSSP) hardware was developed as part of a proof of concept system for the detection of trace metals such as lead, cadmium, and arsenic in Martian dusts and soils. A spark discharge produces plasma from a soil sample, and detectors measure the optical emission from metals in the plasma to identify and quantify them. Trace metal measurements are vital in assessing whether or not the Martian environment will be toxic to human explorers. The current method of x-ray fluorescence can yield concentrations of major species only. Other instruments are incompatible with the volume, weight, and power constraints for a Mars mission. The new instrument will be developed primarily for use in the Martian environment, but it would be adaptable for terrestrial use in environmental monitoring. The NASA Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field initiated the development of the MSSP as part of Glenn's Director's Discretionary Fund project for the Spark Analysis Detection of Trace Metal Species in Martian Dusts and Soils. The objective of this project is to develop and demonstrate a compact, sensitive optical instrument for the detection of trace hazardous metals in Martian dusts and soils.

Erosion resistant nozzles for laser plasma extreme ultraviolet (EUV) sources

DOEpatents

Kubiak, Glenn D.; Bernardez, II, Luis J.

2000-01-04

A gas nozzle having an increased resistance to erosion from energetic plasma particles generated by laser plasma sources. By reducing the area of the plasma-facing portion of the nozzle below a critical dimension and fabricating the nozzle from a material that has a high EUV transmission as well as a low sputtering coefficient such as Be, C, or Si, it has been shown that a significant reduction in reflectance loss of nearby optical components can be achieved even after exposing the nozzle to at least 10.sup.7 Xe plasma pulses.

EDITORIAL: The 20th European Sectional Conference on Atomic and Molecular Physics of Ionized Gases The 20th European Sectional Conference on Atomic and Molecular Physics of Ionized Gases

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petrović, Zoran Lj; Marić, Dragana; Malović, Gordana

2011-03-01

This special issue consists of papers that are associated with invited lectures, workshop papers and hot topic papers presented at the 20th European Sectional Conference on Atomic and Molecular Physics of Ionized Gases (ESCAMPIG XX). This conference was organized in Novi Sad (Serbia) from 13 to 17 July 2010 by the Institute of Physics of the University of Belgrade. It is important to note that this is not a conference 'proceedings'. Following the initial selection process by the International Scientific Committee, all papers were submitted to the journal by the authors and have been fully peer reviewed to the standard required for publication in Plasma Sources Science and Technology (PSST). The papers are based on presentations given at the conference but are intended to be specialized technical papers covering all or part of the topic presented by the author during the meeting. The ESCAMPIG conference is a regular biennial Europhysics Conference of the European Physical Society focusing on collisional and radiative aspects of atomic and molecular physics in partially ionized gases as well as on plasma-surface interaction. The conference focuses on low-temperature plasma sciences in general and includes the following topics: Atomic and molecular processes in plasmas Transport phenomena, particle velocity distribution function Physical basis of plasma chemistry Plasma surface interaction (boundary layers, sheath, surface processes) Plasma diagnostics Plasma and discharges theory and simulation Self-organization in plasmas, dusty plasmas Upper atmospheric plasmas and space plasmas Low-pressure plasma sources High-pressure plasma sources Plasmas and gas flows Laser-produced plasmas During ESCAMPIG XX special sessions were dedicated to workshops on: Atomic and molecular collision data for plasma modeling, organized by Professors Z Lj Petrovic and N Mason Plasmas in medicine, organized by Dr N Puac and Professor G Fridman. The conference topics were represented in the program by 16 invited lectures, 7 selected hot topics, and 191 poster presentations. The largest number of contributed papers was submitted in Topic 5: Plasma diagnostics (37). The workshop topics were addressed by 10 invited lectures, 5 oral presentations and 7 posters. A post-conference workshop with 5 invited lectures was organized, dealing with the data needs for modeling of plasma sources of light. ESCAMPIG XX was attended by 185 scientists from 31 countries. Of the participants, 30% were PhD students (55). The list includes scientists from the USA, Japan, Australia, Mexico and other non-European countries, which indicates the truly international status of the conference. We would like to thank the authors for their efforts in preparing stimulating lectures and interesting articles for the readers of PSST, and the scientific community dealing with ionized gases, plasma sources and atomic, molecular and chemical physics of low-temperature plasmas for continued interest in the field of ESCAMPIG. We would like to thank the organizers of all previous ESCAMPIG conferences for setting the standards for organization and, in particular, the organizers of ESCAMPIG XVIII and XIX for their direct help and insight. Finally the International Scientific Committee and its chairman in particular have worked hard to select the best possible program and to keep us in line with almost 40 years of tradition and standards of the conference. Most importantly this has been the 20th conference. The quality of new papers shows maturity and new vistas in the field that has produced so much fundamental understanding of complex, non-equilibrium, even nonlinear plasmas. At the same time the field has led to some of the key technologies of modern civilization and has shown that responsible science that pays attention to its societal benefits should have no fear for its future. All critical issues studied today were presented at the meeting and only a small part is represented here. For example, discharges in liquids or above liquids were covered by several lectures represented by two papers. Verreycken et al [1] studied optical emission spectroscopy and Rayleigh scattering in discharges above water electrodes in order to measure gas temperature. At the same time Starikovsky et al [2] showed that it is possible to strike a breakdown directly in the liquid phase without gaseous evaporation or bubbles. Another key issue of present-day low-temperature plasma physics is atmospheric pressure discharges. Application of atmospheric pressure microwave plasma was considered by Belmonte et al [3] as a source for plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition. Strategies to produce nanosize structures and high deposition rates have also been proposed. Akishev et al [4] presented modeling results showing why spatial reproducibility of the origins of micro-discharges in a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) is very high while the stochastic nature of the breakdown leads to jitter. Associated with the application of plasmas in many systems is control plasma chemistry. Tanarro and Herrero [5] performed measurements and modeling of dominant species in a hollow cathode discharge with variation of pressure. Dramatic changes in composition were noticed in H2, H2/Ar, and air. For example, NO becomes the second most abundant neutral under some conditions while at high mean energies H2+ ions become more abundant than H3+. Loureiro et al [6] presented the most detailed self-consistent model of discharges in N2, both pure and in mixtures with H2 and CH4. The model includes coupling of different mechanisms in the gas phase and on surfaces. A further example of detailed plasma chemistry and modeling of possible industrial applications is the work of De Bie et al [7] who studied the conversion of methane to more complex hydrocarbons and other gases in a detailed model of kinetic and plasma chemistry of a DBD reactor. Associated with plasma chemistry models but with a completely different final goal is the work of Taccogna et al [8]. They provide a detailed model of negative ion production in an ITER source of fast neutrals for heating of fusion plasma. Low-temperature plasmas have made their most significant impact through application of etching and other plasma techniques in the production of integrated circuits. Associated with this there have been several papers dealing with control of plasmas relevant for plasma etching applications. Czarnetzki et al [9] presented the modeling of an electrical asymmetry effect which allows independent control of plasma symmetry, bias and consequently properties of ions reaching the surfaces. Separate control of the flux and energy of ions from capacitively coupled plasmas, while an interesting fundamental issue, is also one of the key issues in the manufacture of integrated circuits. Makabe and Yagisawa [10] gave a detailed presentation of the top-down model of plasma devices for etching and other plasma-related nanotechnologies. Their paper presents a complex model covering atomic and molecular collisions and transport, plasma kinetics in complex geometries, and plasma interaction with surfaces with the ability to calculate the development of etched profiles, and the damage-inducing potentials within the wafer. Finally, as the basis of all modeling of plasmas, atomic and molecular collision and transport data were a much more prominent part of ESCAMPIG conferences in the past. We tried to initiate the return of elementary processes to ESCAMPIG from numerous specialized conferences by organizing a workshop on the data for modeling. Bartschat and Zatsarinny [11] gave a presentation of the foundation of the B-spline R-matrix method and a number of cross section results that extend the databases for plasma modeling of atomic gases. State-of-the-art calculations presented here focus on threshold regions of electronic excitation cross sections where complex structures exist due to resonances. These threshold regions of the excitation cross sections, however, determine the distribution function in the region of the ionization, The interface between plasma modeling and atomic physics is swarm studies, and those are based on transport theory that has recently become quite complex and versatile. Dujko et al [12] considered a Boltzmann equation solution to the transport of charged particles, especially in crossed electric and magnetic fields. Apart from indicating the necessity to include transport properties in E × B fields in plasma modeling, these results show complexity and kinetic phenomena that require kinetic models to be properly included. Finally, Makabe and Tatsumi [13] presented the structure of a comprehensive model of plasma etching devices and focused on the requirements for the atomic and collision cross section data. The winner of the W Crookes Prize was Zoltán Donkó [14] who gave a review of particle-in-cell and Monte Carlo simulation methods and presented a review of a large number of systems where he and his co-workers have applied this technique. In particular the lecture gives examples of different kinetic phenomena that arise in modeling of different plasmas. This presentation covers both applications in the control of low-pressure capacitively coupled plasmas and DC breakdown and glow discharges as well as the issues of modeling of elementary processes in the gas phase and on surfaces. Finally, to reply to Harold Pinter and his famous quote, apart from the known and the unknown there is the joy of extending the border of the 'known' and sharing it with colleagues at conferences like ESCAMPIG. Every answer that is reached opens new horizons and new realms of the 'unknown' to explore, and conferences like ESCAMPIG have proven to be a continuous source of ideas and inspiration for all colleagues within the field of low-temperature plasmas and elementary processes. We can certainly hope that the 20th ESCAMPIG was no exception in this regard. References Verreycken T, van Gessel A F H, Pageau A and Bruggeman P 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024002 Starikovsky A, Yang Y, Cho Y I and Fridman A 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024003 Belmonte T, Gries T, Cardoso R P, Arnoult R, Kosior F and Henrion G 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024004 Akishev Y, Aponin G, Balakirev A, Grushin M, Karalnik V, Petryakov A and Trushkin N 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024005 Tanarro I and Herrero V J 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024006 Loureiro J, Guerra V, Sá P A, Pintassilgo C D and Lino da Silva M 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024007 De Bie C, Martens T, van Dijk, Paulussen S, Verheyde B and Bogaerts A 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024008 Taccogna F, Minelli P, Diomede P, Longo S, Capitelli M and Schneider R 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024009 Czarnetzki U, Schulze J, Schungel E and Donkó Z 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024010 Makabe T and Yagisawa T 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024011 Bartschat K and Zatsarinny O 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024012 Dujko S, White R D, Petrovic Z Lj and Robson R E 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024013 Makabe T and Tatsumi T 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024014 Donkó Z 2011 Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 20 024001

Online tuning of impedance matching circuit for long pulse inductively coupled plasma source operation—An alternate approach

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sudhir, Dass; Bandyopadhyay, M., E-mail: mainak@ter-india.org; Chakraborty, A.

2014-01-15

Impedance matching circuit between radio frequency (RF) generator and the plasma load, placed between them, determines the RF power transfer from RF generator to the plasma load. The impedance of plasma load depends on the plasma parameters through skin depth and plasma conductivity or resistivity. Therefore, for long pulse operation of inductively coupled plasmas, particularly for high power (∼100 kW or more) where plasma load condition may vary due to different reasons (e.g., pressure, power, and thermal), online tuning of impedance matching circuit is necessary through feedback. In fusion grade ion source operation, such online methodology through feedback is notmore » present but offline remote tuning by adjusting the matching circuit capacitors and tuning the driving frequency of the RF generator between the ion source operation pulses is envisaged. The present model is an approach for remote impedance tuning methodology for long pulse operation and corresponding online impedance matching algorithm based on RF coil antenna current measurement or coil antenna calorimetric measurement may be useful in this regard.« less

Development of high-density helicon plasma sources and their applications

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shinohara, Shunjiro; Hada, Tohru; Motomura, Taisei

2009-05-15

We report on the development of unique, high-density helicon plasma sources and describe their applications. Characterization of one of the largest helicon plasma sources yet constructed is made. Scalings of the particle production efficiency are derived from various plasma production devices in open literature and our own data from long and short cylinder devices, i.e., high and low values of the aspect ratio A (the ratio of the axial length to the diameter), considering the power balance in the framework of a simple diffusion model. A high plasma production efficiency is demonstrated, and we clarify the structures of the excitedmore » waves in the low A region down to 0.075 (the large device diameter of 73.8 cm with the axial length as short as 5.5 cm). We describe the application to plasma propulsion using a new concept that employs no electrodes. A very small diameter (2.5 cm) helicon plasma with 10{sup 13} cm{sup -3} density is produced, and the preliminary results of electromagnetic plasma acceleration are briefly described.« less

Visible light emission measurements from a dense electrothermal launcher plasma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hankins, O. E.; Bourham, M. A.; Earnhart, J.; Gilligan, J. G.

1993-01-01

Measurements of the visible light emission from dense, weakly non-ideal plasmas have been performed on the experimental electrothermal launcher device 'SIRENS'. The plasma is created by the ablation or a Lexan insulator in the source, which then flows through a cylindrical barrel which serves as the material sample. Visible light emission spectra have been observed both in-bore and from the muzzle flash or the barrel, and from the flash or the source. Due to high plasma opacity (the plasma emits as a near blackbody) and absorption by the molecular components of the vapor shield, the hotter core or the arc has been difficult to observe. Recent measurements along the axis or the device indicate time-averaged plasma temperatures in the barrel or about 1 eV for lower energy shots, which agree with experimental measurements of the average heat flux and plasma conductivity along the barrel. Measurements or visible emission from the source indicate time averaged temperatures of 1 to 2 eV which agree with the theoretical estimates derived from ablated mass measurements and calculated estimates derived from plasma conductivity measurements.

Cytotoxicity of protein corona-graphene oxide nanoribbons on human epithelial cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mbeh, Doris A.; Akhavan, Omid; Javanbakht, Taraneh; Mahmoudi, Morteza; Yahia, L.'Hocine

2014-11-01

Graphene oxide nanoribbons (GONRs) were synthesized using an oxidative unzipping of multi-walled carbon nanotubes. The interactions of the GONRs with various concentrations of fetal bovine serum or human plasma serum indicated that the GONRs were functionalized substantially by the albumin originated from the two different protein sources. Then, concentration-dependent cytotoxicity of the protein-functionalized GONRs on human epithelial cells was studied. Although the GONRs with concentrations ≤50 μg/mL did not exhibit significant cytotoxicity on the cells (with the cell viability >85%), the concentration of 100 μg/mL exhibited significant cytotoxicity including prevention of cell proliferation and induction of cell apoptosis. These results can provide more in-depth understanding about cytotoxic effects of graphene nanostructures which can be functionalized by the proteins of media.

Development of a microplate coagulation assay for Factor V in human plasma.

PubMed

Tilley, Derek; Levit, Irina; Samis, John A

2011-06-28

Factor V (FV) in its activated form, FVa, is a critical regulator of thrombin generation during fibrin clot formation. There is a need of a simple, fast, and inexpensive microplate-based coagulation assay to measure the functional activity of FV in human plasma. The objective of this study was to develop a microplate-based assay that measures FV coagulation activity during clot formation in human plasma, which is currently not available. The FV assay requires a kinetic microplate reader to measure the change in absorbance at 405nm during fibrin formation in human plasma. The FV assay accurately measures the time, initial rate, and extent of fibrin clot formation in human plasma. The FV microplate assay is simple, fast, economical, sensitive to approx 24-80pM, and multiple samples may be analyzed simultaneously. All the required materials are commercially available. Standard curves of time or initial rate of fibrin clot formation vs FV activity in the 1-stage assay (Without activation by thrombin) may be used to measure FV activity in samples of human plasma. The assay was used to demonstrate that in nine patients with disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC), the FV 1-stage, 2-stage (With activation by thrombin), and total (2-stage activity - 1-stage activity) activities were decreased, on average, by approximately 54%, 44%, and 42%, respectively, from prolonged clot times when compared to normal pooled human reference plasma (NHP). The results indicate that the FV in the DIC patient plasmas supported both a delayed and slower rate of fibrin clot formation compared with NHP; however, the extent of fibrin clot formation in the DIC patients remained largely unchanged from that observed with NHP. The FV microplate assay may be easily adapted to measure the activity of any coagulation factor using the appropriate factor-deficient plasma and clot initiating reagent. The microplate assay will find use in both research and clinical laboratories to provide measurement of the functional coagulation activity of FV in human plasma.