The rise in multidrug-resistant (MDR) ESKAPE bacteria have become a major therapeutic challenge globally. Recently, novel cold atmospheric pressure plasma (CAP) as an antimicrobial is becoming popular. In this study, an indigenously developed AC cold atmospheric pressure plasma jet (CAPJ) fed with argon gas was used to evaluate its antimicrobial efficacy on these bacteria isolated from clinical specimens such as urine, blood, and sputum in a tertiary care hospital in India. The difference in CAP’s antimicrobial activity on Gram-negative bacilli (MDR E. coli) and Grampositive cocci (MDR S. aureus) was observed with various input parameters, such as microbial concentration, CAP exposure time, and exposure distance. It was observed that oxidative stress induced by reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (O2-, NO+, OH., H2O2, ONOO-, NO., NO2., HO2., O3-, etc.) and electrostatic stress by ions (Ar+, O+, O2-, OH-, NO+, OH+, NO3-, NO2-, O3-, etc.) might play a crucial role in microbial inactivation. In addition to this, a decrease in adenosine triphosphate concentration post-CAP exposure in a liquid media suggested an efficient microbial inactivation effect. The outcome of this research would be extremely beneficial to multidisciplinary researchers in this field.

Background and Purpose: In recent decades, a focus on the most critical and fundamental concepts has proven highly advantageous to students and educators in many science disciplines. Pharmacology, unlike microbiology, biochemistry or physiology, lacks a consensus list of such core concepts. Experimental approach: We sought to develop a research-based, globally relevant list of core concepts that all students completing a foundational pharmacology course should master. This two-part project consisted of exploratory and refinement phases. The exploratory phase involved empirical data mining of the introductory sections of five key textbooks, in parallel with an online survey of over 200 pharmacology educators from 17 countries across six continents. The refinement phase involved three Delphi rounds involving 24 experts from 15 countries across six continents. Key Results: The exploratory phase resulted in a consolidated list of 74 candidate core concepts. In the refinement phase, the expert group produced a consensus list of 25 core concepts of pharmacology. Conclusion and Implications: This list will allow pharmacology educators everywhere to focus their efforts on the conceptual knowledge perceived to matter most by experts within the discipline. Next steps for this project include defining and unpacking each core concept and developing resources to help pharmacology educators globally teach and assess these concepts within their educational contexts.