LAUSR

OBJECTIVE The incidence of severe infectious complications after burn injury increases mortality by 40%. However, traditional approaches for managing burn infections are not always effective. High-voltage pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment shortly after a burn injury has demonstrated an antimicrobial effect in vivo; however, the working parameters and long-term effects of PEF treatment have not yet been investigated. APPROACH Nine sets of PEF parameters were investigated to optimize the applied voltage, pulse duration, and frequency or pulse repetition for disinfection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) infection in a stable mouse burn wound model. The bacterial load after the PEF administration was monitored for 3 days via bioluminescence imaging. Histological assessments and inflammation response analyses were performed at 1 and 24 hours after the therapy. RESULTS Among all tested PEF parameters, the best disinfection efficacy of P. aeruginosa infection was achieved in a combination of 500 V, 100 μs and 200 pulses, delivered at 3 Hz through two plate electrodes positioned 1 mm apart up to 3 days after the injury. Histological examinations revealed fewer inflammatory signs in PEF-treated wounds compared with untreated infected burns. Moreover, the expression levels of multiple inflammatory-related cytokines (IL-1α/β, IL-6, IL-10, LIF, TNF-α), chemokines (MIP-1α/β and MCP-1) and inflammation-related factors (VEGF, M-CSF, G-CSF) were significantly decreased in the infected burn wound after PEF treatment. INNOVATION We showed that PEF treatment on infected wounds reduce P. aeruginosa load and modulate inflammatory responses. CONCLUSION The data presented in this study suggest that PEF treatment is a potent candidate for antimicrobial therapy for P. aeruginosa burn infections.