Dr. Katharina Stapelmann, assistant professor of nuclear engineering at NC State University, is leading a National Institute of Health-funded (NIH) grant on the “Development of a closed-loop control system for plasma medicine.”

“The objective of this grant is to develop endpoint detection strategies for plasma-based therapies, using plasma-facilitated wound repair as the endpoint and oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) as the primary detectable marker. It will facilitate developmental efforts for this particular therapeutic use of plasma and will also provide a solid foundation for applying endpoint detection to other translational applications of cold plasma, including therapies for dermatological conditions, cancer, and infections by viral and bacterial pathogens.

The proposed research is innovative because it will use ORP detection as the basis for a sensor-controlled, closed-loop feedback control system that will regulate plasma delivery as determined by the endpoint outcome.”

Collaborators on this award include Francois Berthiaume, PhD at Rutgers University Department of Biomedical Engineering, Fred C. Krebs, PhD at Drexel University Department of Microbiology & Immunology, and Vandana Miller, MD at Drexel University College of Medicine. Dr. Berthiaume will be work on in vivo healing, while Drs. Krebs and Miller will work on in vitro models of epithelial wound repair. Dr. Stapelmann will work on device engineering and plasma chemistry.