Abstract
This paper describes three pulse generators: a spark gap switched coaxial cable, a spark gap switched Blumlein, and a solid state modulator, developed for applying ultrashort electrical pulses to biological materials in culture. Recent research has shown that ultrashort pulsed electric fields can induce apoptosis in biological cells, and that pulses as short as 10 ns with field amplitude greater than 1 MV/m cause membrane phospholipid rearrangement and activation of the effector enzymes of apoptosis. Pulses of very short duration use only tens of mJ per mL per pulse to induce apoptosis and other intracellular effects without causing thermal trauma. The pulse generators discussed here, each of a different topology, deliver ns pulsed electric fields (nsPEF) to cells in liquid suspension, and can be modified to drive electrodes for external, surgical, or endoscopie treatment of tissues in situ.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 820-825 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | IEEE Transactions on Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation |
Volume | 10 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Oct 2003 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Apoptosis
- Blumlein
- Electric field
- Electroperturbation
- Fluorescence microscopy
- Nanosecond
- NsPEF
- Phospholipid inversion
- Pulse forming network
- Pulse generator
- Pulsed electric field
- Real-time
- Ultrashort
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering