A cold plasma source (CPS) developed by us has been put forward. The operating principle of the device is based on the use of a pulsed positive corona discharge at atmospheric pressure. The CPS exhibits compactness and autonomy. Particularly, the weight of the handheld plasma source is 80 g with the mass of the portable battery pack not exceeding 100 g. The electrical characteristics of electrode systems designed for direct and indirect treatment of biomedical objects with cold plasma were investigated. It was shown that in the studied electrode gaps the discharge exists in a streamer mode characterized by repetitive nanosecond current pulses in the range of 10 – 80 mA at operating voltages up to 10 kV. It was found that for the electrode system developed for indirect generation of cold plasma, the voltage range corresponding to stable discharge is wider than that for the system designed for the direct one.