A novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has become one of the greatest challenges of the modern world and hascaused a pandemic with millions of infected people and hundreds of thousands of deaths around the globe.Transmissions occur through respiratory droplets, as well as through contaminated hands and environmentalsurfaces. Therefore, cleaning and disinfection of potentially contaminated surfaces becomes one of the mostimportant measures in prevention of coronavirus transmission, along with social distancing and hand hygiene.Current CDC guidelines for preventing transmission of coronavirus specifically recommend cleaning anddisinfection of frequently touched surfaces.The use of commercially available disinfectants significantly reduces microbial counts on environmental surfacesfor only up to 4 hours after treatment. An alcohol-based disinfectant with a compound capable of forming adurable but removable biocidal film could combine the advantages of both approaches described above. It wouldcombine high short-term efficacy due to the presence of alcohol and prevent microbial re-contamination due tothe long-lasting efficacy of the film, while requiring less frequent applications.VRM Labs has recently developed such disinfectant, which contains 3 wt. % chitosan and 60 % wt. ethanol.Chitosan is obtained from crustacean shells and its antimicrobial and antiviral efficacy is well-established.However, it has not been used in surface disinfectants because of high viscosity of its aqueous solutions andlong drying times required to form a continuous film. Our proposed formulation has low viscosity, outstandingfilm-forming properties and drying time similar to that for currently used disinfectants. In preliminary studies, doorhandles treated by this novel formulation prevented microbial growth for up to 48 hours after treatment.The goal of this Phase I study is to create an optimized prototype of chitosan-based disinfectant and to test itsbactericidal and viricidal performance in a limited-scale study in a healthcare setting. In Aim I, we will characterizefilm formation properties, including film thickness, film durability, abrasion resistance, and film drying times forformulations with different chitosan and ethanol concentrations. We will also evaluate in vitro antimicrobial andantiviral efficacy of these chitosan-based coatings with the most common pathogens involved known to be asource of infection on environmental surfaces, and with a surrogate coronavirus to mimic antiviral action againstCOVID-19. In Aim II, we will use the optimized formulation developed in Aim I to coat several designated elevatorbuttons, door handles, and bed rails in a medical facility (Greenville Memorial Hospital in South Carolina). Wewill then collect environmental swabs from these coated surfaces on a regular basis and compare the microbialand viral counts to those obtained from similar surfaces treated according to the current hospital protocol. Theseexperiments will help to determine the efficacy time window for the coating. Project Narrative
Currently used surface disinfectants tend to provide high-level activity over a relatively short
period of time, typically less than 4 hours. A long-acting topical treatment of environmental
surfaces would save invaluable resources such as cleansing agents and worker time and
effectively reduce disease transmission. We developed a novel film-forming disinfectant that
contains ~3 wt. % of chitosan and ~60 wt. % of ethanol. Upon application to a surface, it forms a
durable chitosan film, which in preliminary experiments was resistant to rubbing by hand and
showed biocidal properties for at least 48 hours. Chitosan is a well-established antimicrobial,
antiviral, and antifungal agent, but has not been used in surface disinfectants because of high
viscosity of its aqueous formulations and long drying times. We were able to overcome these
problems by making a formulation with 60% ethanol. Our formulation is very thin and sprayable,
and it shows excellent film-forming properties and fast drying times similar to those of currently
used products. Therefore, it is expected to provide a longer and higher quality protection of
environmental surfaces while requiring less frequent applications. 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