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Selected Mechanistic Aspects of Viral Inactivation by Peracetic Acid
Bradley W Schmitz1, Hanwei Wang1, Kellogg Schwab1
1JHU/Stantec Alliance, Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, United States.
Environmental Science & Technology
|November 18, 2021
Summary
Peracetic acid (PAA) effectively inactivates viruses by reacting with amino acids in their protein shells, not their genetic material. This understanding helps predict virus susceptibility to PAA disinfection.
Area of Science:
- Environmental microbiology
- Water treatment technologies
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Peracetic acid (PAA) offers an alternative disinfection method for wastewater treatment, avoiding harmful byproducts.
- While PAA's effectiveness against viruses is known, the precise inactivation mechanisms require further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the reaction kinetics of PAA with amino acids and nucleotides, the fundamental components of viruses.
- To determine if PAA directly damages viral genetic material (RNA).
Main Methods:
- Assessed PAA consumption rates when reacting with various amino acids and nucleotides.
- Quantified the impact of PAA treatment on purified RNA from MS2 bacteriophage and murine norovirus.
Main Results:
- Cysteine and methionine showed rapid PAA consumption, while cystine and tryptophan reacted more slowly.
- Other amino acids and all tested nucleotides did not significantly react with PAA.
- PAA treatment did not significantly reduce the integrity of viral RNA.
Conclusions:
- PAA primarily inactivates viruses by targeting and reacting with specific amino acids within their capsid proteins.
- Viral genomes (RNA) are not significantly affected by PAA treatment under the tested conditions.
- Predicting virus susceptibility to PAA can be informed by analyzing capsid protein composition and structure, particularly the abundance of susceptible amino acids.
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