ABSTRACT
Infection prevention clothing is becoming an essential protective tool in the current pandemic, especially because now we know that SARS-CoV-2 can easily infect humans in poorly ventilated indoor spaces. However, commercial infection prevention clothing is made of fabrics that are not capable of inactivating the virus. Therefore, viral infections of symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals wearing protective clothing such as masks can occur through aerosol transmission or by contact with the contaminated surfaces of the masks, which are suspected as an increasing source of highly infectious biological waste. Herein, we report an easy fabrication method of a novel antiviral non-woven fabric containing polymer filaments that were coated with solidified hand soap. This extra protective fabric is capable of inactivating enveloped viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 and phi 6 in one minute of contact. In this study, this antiviral fabric was used to fabricate an antiviral face mask and did not show any cytotoxic effect in human keratinocyte HaCaT cells. Furthermore, this antiviral non-woven fabric could be used for the fabrication of other infection prevention clothing such as caps, scrubs, shirts, trousers, disposable gowns, overalls, hoods, aprons, and shoe covers. Therefore, this low-cost technology could provide a wide range of infection protective tools to combat COVID-19 and future pandemics in developed and underdeveloped countries.
ABSTRACT
The Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic is demanding rapid action of the authorities and scientific community in order to find new antimicrobial solutions that could inactivate the pathogen SARS-CoV-2 that causes this disease. Gram-positive bacteria contribute to severe pneumonia associated with COVID-19, and their resistance to antibiotics is increasing at an alarming rate. In this regard, non-woven fabrics are currently used for the fabrication of infection prevention clothing such as face masks, caps, scrubs, shirts, trousers, disposable gowns, overalls, hoods, aprons and shoe covers as protective tools against viral and bacterial infections. However, these non-woven fabrics are made of materials that do not possess antimicrobial activity. Thus, we have developed here non-woven fabrics with antimicrobial coatings of cranberry extracts capable of inactivating enveloped viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 and the phage phi 6, and two multidrug-resistant bacteria: the methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis. The non-toxicity of these advanced technology was ensured using a Caenorhabditis elegans in vivo model. These results open up a new prevention path using natural and biodegradable compounds for the fabrication of infection prevention clothing in the current COVID-19 and future pandemics.
ABSTRACT
COVID-19 pandemic and associated supply-chain disruptions emphasise the requirement for antimicrobial materials for on-demand manufacturing. Besides aerosol transmission, SARS-CoV-2 is also propagated through contact with virus-contaminated surfaces. As such, the development of effective biofunctional materials that can inactivate SARS-CoV-2 are critical for pandemic preparedness. Such materials will enable the rational development of antiviral devices with prolonged serviceability reducing the environmental burden of disposable alternatives. This research reveals the novel use of Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) to 3D print porous Cobalt-Chromium-Molybdenum (Co-Cr-Mo) superalloy with potent antiviral activity (100% viral inactivation in 30 mins). The porous material was rationally conceived using a multi-objective surrogate model featuring track thickness (tt) and pore diameter ({phi}d) as responses. The regression analysis found the most significant parameters for Co-Cr-Mo track formation to be the interaction effects of scanning rate (Vs) and laser power (Pl) in the order PlVs > Vs > Pl. Contrastively, the pore diameter was found to be primarily driven by the hatch spacing (Sh). The study is the first to demonstrate the superior antiviral properties of 3D printed Co-Cr-Mo superalloy against an enveloped virus used as biosafe viral model of SARS-CoV-2. The material significantly outperforms the viral inactivation time of other broadly used antiviral metals such as copper and silver from 5 hours to 30 minutes. As such the study goes beyond the current state-of-the-art in antiviral alloys to provide extra-protection to combat the SARS-COV-2 viral spread. The evolving nature of the COVID-19 pandemic brings new and unpredictable challenges where on-demand 3D printing of antiviral materials can achieve rapid solutions while reducing the environmental impact of disposable devices. Graphical abstract O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=148 SRC="FIGDIR/small/454385v1_ufig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (47K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@992f2forg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@e8dbe5org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1bcb8adorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@100a345_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG
ABSTRACT
Face masks have globally been accepted to be an effective protective tool to prevent bacterial and viral transmission, especially against indoor aerosol transmission. However, commercial face masks contain filters that are made of materials that are not capable of inactivating neither SARS-CoV-2 nor multidrug-resistant bacteria. Therefore, symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals can infect other people even if they wear them because some viable viral or bacterial loads can escape from the masks. Furthermore, viral or bacterial contact transmission can occur after touching the mask, which constitutes an increasing source of contaminated biological waste. Additionally, bacterial pathogens contribute to the SARS-CoV-2 mediated pneumonia disease complex and their resistance to antibiotics in pneumonia treatment is increasing at an alarming rate. In this regard, herein, we report the development of a novel protective non-woven face mask filter fabricated with a biofunctional coating of benzalkonium chloride that is capable of inactivating SARS-CoV-2 in one minute of contact, and the life-threatening methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis. Nonetheless, despite the results obtained, further studies are needed to ensure the safety and correct use of this technology for the mass production and commercialization of this broad-spectrum antimicrobial face mask filter. Our novel protective non-woven face mask filter would be useful for many health care workers and researchers working in this urgent and challenging field.
