Simple, Low-Cost and Long-Lasting Film for Virus Inactivation Using Avian Coronavirus Model as Challenge.

The COVID-19 infection, caused by SARS-CoV-2, is inequitably distributed and more lethal among populations with lower socioeconomic status. Direct contact with contaminated surfaces has been among the virus sources, as it remains infective up to days. Several disinfectants have been shown to inactivate SARS-CoV-2, but they rapidly evaporate, are flammable or toxic and may be scarce or inexistent for vulnerable populations. Therefore, we are proposing simple, easy to prepare, low-cost and efficient antiviral films, made with a widely available dishwashing detergent, which can be spread on hands and inanimate surfaces and is expected to maintain virucidal activity for longer periods than the current sanitizers. Avian coronavirus (ACoV) was used as model of the challenge to test the antivirus efficacy of the proposed films. Polystyrene petri dishes were covered with a thin layer of detergent formula. After drying, the films were exposed to different virus doses for 10 min and virus infectivity was determined using embryonated chicken eggs, and RNA virus quantification in allantoic fluids by RT-qPCR. The films inactivated the ACoV (ranging from 103.7 to 106.7 EID50), which is chemically and morphologically similar to SARS-CoV-2, and may constitute an excellent alternative to minimize the spread of COVID-19.

miRNA repertoire and host immune factor regulation upon avian coronavirus infection in eggs.

Avian infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) is a coronavirus with great economic impact on the poultry industry, causing an acute and highly contagious disease in chickens that primarily affects the respiratory and reproductive systems. The cellular regulation of IBV pathogenesis and the host immune responses involved remain to be fully elucidated. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have emerged as a class of crucial regulators of numerous cellular processes, including responses to viral infections. Here, we employed a high-throughput sequencing approach to analyze the miRNA composition of the spleen and the lungs of chicken embryos upon IBV infection. Compared to healthy chicken embryos, 13 and six miRNAs were upregulated in the spleen and the lungs, respectively, all predicted to influence viral transcription, cytokine production, and lymphocyte functioning. Subsequent downregulation of NFATC3, NFAT5, SPPL3, and TGFB2 genes in particular was observed only in the spleen, demonstrating the biological functionality of the miRNAs in this lymphoid organ. This is the first study that describes the modulation of miRNAs and the related host immune factors by IBV in chicken embryos. Our data provide novel insight into complex virus-host interactions and specifically highlight components that could affect the host's immune response to IBV infection.