Scientists have determined how ultraviolet radiation affects coronavirus

Light can be used to destroy infectious coronavirus particles that contaminate surfaces.

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Researchers from the University of Southampton (UK) studied how ultraviolet laser light destroys the virus by targeting each of these critical components, reports EurekAlert.

SARS-CoV-2 virus particles consist of a core of nucleic acid chains containing the genetic information of the virus, surrounded by a lipid membrane with protein spikes sticking out. Each component is necessary for infection, the article says.

Using a specialized ultraviolet laser with two different wavelengths, the scientists were able to determine how each viral component degrades when exposed to bright light.

They found that the genomic material was very sensitive to degradation, and the spike proteins lost their ability to bind to human cells.

Very little ultraviolet light below 280 nm reaches the Earth’s surface from the Sun. It was this less studied light that scientists used in the study, studying its disinfecting properties, the article says.

Ultraviolet light is strongly absorbed by different components of the virus, including the genetic material (approximately 260 nm) and the protein spikes (approximately 230 nm), which allowed the team to select laser frequencies of 266 nm and 227 nm for the project. It turned out that:

• 266 nm light causes RNA damage at low powers, affecting the genetic information of the virus. The 266 nm light also damaged the structure of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, reducing the ability to bind to human cells by breaking disulfide bonds and aromatic amino acids;
• light at 227 nm was less effective at inducing damage to RNA, but more effective at damaging proteins due to oxidation (a chemical reaction involving oxygen) revealing protein structure.

Importantly, SARS-CoV-2 has one of the largest genomes among RNA viruses. This makes it particularly susceptible to genomic damage, the article notes.

Thus, this discovery may help in the development of new methods of disinfection against coronavirus.

Easy decontamination of airborne viruses offers a versatile tool for disinfecting our public spaces and sensitive equipment that is otherwise difficult to decontaminate with conventional methods, the researchers note. We now understand the differential sensitivity of molecular components in viruses to light inactivation, opening the possibility for finely tuned disinfection technology.

Source: EurekAlert

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David

I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.