Antiviral face mask functionalized with solidified hand soap: low-cost infection prevention clothing against enveloped viruses such as SARS-CoV-2

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.

Next generation infection prevention clothing: Non-woven Fabrics Coated with Cranberry Extracts Capable of Inactivating Enveloped Viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 and Multidrug-resistant Bacteria

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.