Action of disinfectants on canine coronavirus replication in vitro

Canine coronavirus (CCoV) is responsible for enteric disease in pups. Infected dogs generally have a rapid recovery, so the virus is highly contagious and the spread of infection is difficult to control. Chemical disinfectants have been widely used in human disease-control programmes to prevent viral infectious diseases from spreading, but to date, there are no studies in the literature on the sensitivity of CCoV to chemical biocides. The present study investigated the sensitivity of CCoV to disinfectants currently used for prophylaxis in kennel and dog breeding locations. The effects of three agents: alkyl-dimethyl-benzyl-ammonium chloride, benzalkonium chloride and didecyl-dimethyl-ammonium chloride, on the infectivity titre of CCoV in A72 cell lines, were studied at different concentrations. Although they may regard a small number of agents, the findings showed that the sensitivity of CCoV to disinfectants varies and the differences are dose correlated. In general, virus inactivation implies a permanent loss of infectivity which can be evaluated in suspensions and hand disinfection tests.