COMPARATIVE EFFECTS OF PLASMA-ACTIVATED WATER AND HYDROGEN PEROXIDE ON ESCHERICHIA COLI GROWTH KINETICS AND EPS CARBOHYDRATE CONTENT

Authors

  • Eduardo Ferreira Martins Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia Aeroespacial – Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica - Laboratório de Plasma e Processos– São José dos Campos (SP), Brazil.
  • Marina Clara Ribeiro dos Santos Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia Aeroespacial – Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica - Laboratório de Plasma e Processos– São José dos Campos (SP), Brazil.
  • Alvaro Busquet de Sant’Anna Junior Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia Aeroespacial – Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica - Laboratório de Plasma e Processos– São José dos Campos (SP), Brazil.
  • Jade Helena Campos Augustroze Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia Aeroespacial – Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica - Laboratório de Plasma e Processos– São José dos Campos (SP), Brazil.
  • Alice Loureiro Martins Universidade Federal de São Paulo – Instituto de Ciência e Tecnologia - Laboratório de Biotecnologia de Plantas – São José dos Campos (SP), Brazil.
  • Michael dos Santos Brito Universidade Federal de São Paulo – Instituto de Ciência e Tecnologia - Laboratório de Biotecnologia de Plantas – São José dos Campos (SP), Brazil.
  • Sonia Khouri Sibelino Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia Aeroespacial – Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica - Laboratório de Plasma e Processos– São José dos Campos (SP), Brazil.
  • Argemiro Soares da Silva Sobrinho Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia Aeroespacial – Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica - Laboratório de Plasma e Processos– São José dos Campos (SP), Brazil.
  • Rodrigo Sávio Pessoa Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia Aeroespacial – Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica - Laboratório de Plasma e Processos– São José dos Campos (SP), Brazil.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17563/rbav.v45i1.1283

Keywords:

Plasma-Activated Water, Surfatron, Escherichia coli, Hydrogen Peroxide, Growth Kinetics, Extracellular Polymeric Substances, Oxidative Stress

Abstract

Plasma-activated water (PAW) is a chemically complex antimicrobial liquid whose biological effects cannot be fully predicted from hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) concentration by itself. This study compared the effects of surfatron-generated PAW and free H2O2 on Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 using two exposure strategies: pulse exposure in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) followed by sodium thiosulfate neutralization and growth in Mueller-Hinton broth (MHB), and direct oxidant addition to MHB before growth monitoring. Abiotic stability assays showed that MHB almost completely depleted detectable H2O2 after 24 h. Under pulse exposure, PAW at 50-mg/L H2O2-equivalent suppressed detectable OD600-based growth, whereas free H2O2 at the same concentration allowed recovery. Under direct addition, PAW allowed delayed growth while H2O2 caused severe growth delay at 50 mg/L. The saccharidic fraction of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) differed among treatments: PAW-treated groups, especially direct addition at 50-mg/L H2O2-equivalent, showed the strongest carbohydrate accumulation in cell-associated and cuvette-adhered fractions. These results demonstrated that H2O2-equivalence alone is insufficient to predict PAW bioactivity and that exposure matrix strongly modulates bacterial growth recovery and EPS associated phenotypes.

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Published

2026-07-22

Issue

Vol. 45 No. 1 (2026): (Jan-Dec)

Section

Original Paper

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Eduardo Ferreira Martins, Marina Clara Ribeiro dos Santos, Alvaro Busquet de Sant’Anna Junior, Jade Helena Campos Augustroze, Alice Loureiro Martins, Michael dos Santos Brito, Sonia Khouri Sibelino, Argemiro Soares da Silva Sobrinho, Rodrigo Sávio Pessoa

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.