Vaporized Hydrogen Peroxide and Ozone Gas Synergistically Reduce Prion Infectivity on Stainless Steel Wire

Area of Science:

• Infectious diseases
• Medical microbiology
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Prions cause neurodegenerative diseases like Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD).
• Iatrogenic transmission of CJD via contaminated medical instruments is a significant public health concern.
• Effective sterilization methods are crucial, especially for preclinical CJD cases that are difficult to detect.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the prion-inactivating efficacy of ozone gas and vaporized hydrogen peroxide (VHP).
• To assess the synergistic sterilizing effect of combining ozone gas and VHP against prions.
• To determine the potential of these agents for sterilizing medical instruments used in CJD patient care.

Main Methods:

• Prions were fixed onto stainless steel wires.
• Wires were treated with ozone gas, VHP, or a combination of both.
• Treated wires were used to intracerebrally infect mice.
• Incubation periods and prion disease development in mice were monitored via bioassay.

Main Results:

• Ozone gas and VHP treatments significantly reduced prion infectivity on stainless steel wires, prolonging incubation times in mice.
• The combination of ozone gas and VHP demonstrated a more potent prion-inactivating effect than either agent alone.
• Mice implanted with wires treated with the combined agents showed the longest incubation periods, indicating enhanced sterilization.

Conclusions:

• Ozone gas and VHP are effective in reducing prion infectivity on medical instruments.
• The combination of ozone gas and VHP offers a potentially superior sterilization strategy for prions.
• This combined approach may significantly mitigate the risk of iatrogenic CJD transmission.