Cold oxygen plasma technology efficiency against different airborne respiratory viruses

Area of Science:

• Virology
• Infectious Diseases
• Plasma Physics

Background:

• Respiratory viruses, including influenza and paramyxoviruses, cause significant global morbidity and mortality.
• Airborne transmission via droplets is the primary route for these infections.
• Controlling virus transmission is crucial for mitigating pandemics and reducing healthcare-associated infections.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a novel cold oxygen plasma (COP) system for its efficacy in decontaminating airborne respiratory viruses.
• To assess the potential of COP technology in controlling virus dissemination in clinical and pandemic scenarios.

Main Methods:

• Development of an experimental device utilizing cold oxygen plasma (COP) generated by deep-UV light exposure to air.
• Testing the COP system's decontamination efficiency against nebulized suspensions of influenza virus A, human parainfluenza virus type 3 (hPIV-3), and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

Main Results:

• The COP system demonstrated significant efficacy in reducing viral titers.
• Reductions of 6.5, 3.8, and 4 log(10) TCID50/mL were recorded for hPIV-3, RSV, and influenza virus A (H5N2), respectively.
• Optimized experimental conditions using COP with an internal device yielded the best results across all tested viruses.

Conclusions:

• Cold oxygen plasma (COP) technology presents an efficient and innovative approach to control airborne virus dissemination.
• COP systems show potential for controlling the nosocomial spread of respiratory viruses in hospitals.
• This technology could be valuable in reducing influenza transmission during pandemic management in various healthcare settings.