Radiation inactivation of alpha-chymotrypsin in aqueous solutions. Effect of irradiation conditions

A comparative study was made of inactivation by gamma- and beta-radiation of alpha-chymotrypsin within a wide range of its initial concentrations (from 10(-4) to 10(-7) M). The regularities of gamma- and beta-inactivation are the same, and distinctions, if any, are due to a greater radiation effect of beta-rays on dilute enzyme solutions (less than or equal to 5 X 10(-6) M). The inactivation of alpha-chymotrypsin by radiation proceeds either via primary molecule unfolding followed by degradation of the most accessible and radiosensitive amino acid residues (pH 7.8) or, to a greater extent, via direct disruption of amino acid residues which can probably be random (pH 3.0). Calcium ions stabilize, on the whole, the enzyme molecule upon irradiation.     

Factors affecting inactivation of Moraxella-Acinetobacter cells in an irradiation process.

The effect of various stages of the irradiation processing of beef on the injury and inactivation of radiation-resistant Moraxella-Acinetobactor cells was studied. Moraxella-Acinetobacter cells were more resistant to heat inactivation and injury when heated in meat with salts (0.75% NaCl and 0.375% sodium tripolyphosphate) then in meat without salts. These salts had no effect on radiation resistance. Both radiation- and heat-injured cells were unable to form colonies at 30 degrees C in plate count agar containing 0.8% NaCl. Neither unstressed nor heat-stressed cells were able to multiply in minced beef incubated at 30 degrees C for 12 h. Only after the beef was diluted 1:10 with peptone water were the heat-injured cells able to repair and eventually multiply. Heated cells were more sensitive to radiation inactivation and injury than unheated cells. After repair, the cells regained their resistance to both NaCl and irradiation. Freezing and storage at -40 degrees C for 14 days had only a slight effect on either unstressed or heat-stressed cells.     

Ozone inactivation of cell-associated viruses.

The inactivation of HEp-2 cell-associated poliovirus (Sabin 1) and coxsackievirus A9 was investigated in three experimental systems, using ozone as a disinfectant. The cell-associated viral samples were adjusted to a turbidity of 5 nephelometric turbidity units. The cell-associated poliovirus and coxsackievirus samples demonstrated survival in a continuous-flow ozonation system at applied ozone dosages of 4.06 and 4.68 mg/liter, respectively, for 30 s. Unassociated viral controls were inactivated by the application of 0.081 mg of ozone per liter for 10 s. Ultrasonic treatment of cell-associated enteric viruses did not increase inactivation of the cell-associated viruses. The batch reactor with a declining ozone residual did not effect total inactivation of either cell-associated enteric virus. These cell-associated viruses were completely inactivated after exposure to ozone in a batch reactor using continuous ozonation. Inactivation of cell-associated poliovirus required a 2-min contact period with an applied ozone dosage of 6.82 mg/liter and a residual ozone concentration of 4.70 mg/liter, whereas the coxsackievirus was completely inactivated after a 5-min exposure to an applied ozone dosage of 4.81 mg/liter with an ozone residual of 2.18 mg/liter. These data indicate that viruses associated with cells or cell fragments are protected from inactivation by ozone concentrations that readily inactivate purified virus. The cell-associated viral samples used in this research contained particles that were 10 to 15 microns in size. Use of a filtration system before ozonation would remove these particles, thereby facilitating inactivation of any remaining viruses associated with cellular fragments.     

UV-C irradiation as a tool to eradicate algae in caves

Algal proliferation has commonly been reported to occur on monuments, such as crypts, churches, and caves, as soon as artificial lighting is used. In this work we study the effects of UV-C irradiation on algae collected in different caves in Dordogne (southwest of France). First, the effect of UV-C irradiation was tested on algal cell suspensions during increasing exposure times. After treatment, the photosynthetic capacity was assayed using a polarometric method, and algal cell viability was then estimated using a Trypan blue test after a rest period of 15 h. UV-C irradiation was then studied on algal cells cultivated on a solid support consisting of pieces of calcareous stone. Drops of concentrated algal cells were inoculated on stone and exposed to UV-C radiation for 3, 6, or 9 h. After this irradiation, half of the samples were submitted to a high white light intensity (1400 ??mol m⁻² s⁻¹ of photosynthetically active radiation, PAR) for 6 h while the other half were incubated in the culture room. Subsequently, algal macroscopic parameters such as covering rate and colonized area were measured by macro photography. Both experiments led to the conclusion that UV-C irradiation has deleterious effects on photosynthetic parameters and growth of algal cells.     

Gamma irradiation of animal sera for inactivation of viruses and mollicutes – A review

Animal-derived materials such as animal sera represent a low, but finite, risk for introduction of an adventitious agent (virus or mollicute) into a biological bulk harvest during upstream manufacturing processes involving mammalian cell substrates. Viral and mollicute (Mycoplasma sp. and Acholeplasma sp.) contamination events have been relatively rare, but many of those that have been reported have been attributed to use of infected animal sera in growth media during cell expansion. The risk of introduction of viruses and mollicutes may be mitigated by elimination of the use of animal sera and implementation instead of chemically defined or serum- and animal-derived material-free cell culture media. When use of animal sera is unavoidable, however, mitigation of the risk of introducing an adventitious contaminant may involve treatment of the sera to inactivate potential contaminants. Gamma irradiation is one of the most widely employed methods for viral and mollicute inactivation in animal sera. In this article, we review the inactivation results reported for viral and mollicute inactivation in frozen serum. Studies performed to assess the impact of gamma irradiation on serum quality and performance are also discussed. The available data indicate that inactivation of mollicutes in serum is essentially complete at the gamma radiation doses normally employed (25–40 kGy), while the efficacy and kinetics for viral inactivation in serum by gamma irradiation appear to be dependent in part upon the size of the target virus.     

Comparative inactivation of viruses by chlorine.

The kinetics of inactivation of six enteric viruses plus simian virus 40 and Kilham rat virus by free available chlorine was studied under carefully controlled laboratory conditions. It was found that the different virus types demonstrated a wide range of susceptibility to chlorine disinfection. The rate of inactivation was greater at pH 6 than at pH 10; however, the relative susceptibilities of the different viruses were affected differently by a change in pH, suggesting that the pH influenced both the species of chlorine present and the susceptibility of the different viruses to chlorine. The presence of potassium chloride also affected the susceptibility of viruses to chlorine.     

Late induction of human DNA ligase I after UV-C irradiation.

We have studied the regulation of DNA ligase I gene expression in UV-C irradiated human primary fibroblasts. An increase of approximately 6-fold both in DNA ligase I messenger and activity levels was observed 24 h after UV treatment, when nucleotide excision repair (NER) is no longer operating. DNA ligase I induction is serum-independent and is controlled mainly by the steady-state level of its mRNA. The activation is a function of the UV dose and occurs at lower doses in cells showing UV hypersensitivity. No increase in replicative DNA polymerase alpha activity was found, indicating that UV induction of DNA ligase I occurs through a pathway that differs from the one causing activation of the replication machinery. These data suggest that DNA ligase I induction could be linked to the repair of DNA damage not removed by NER.     

Mechanism of inactivation of enteric viruses in fresh water.

Fresh water obtained from nine sources was shown to cause inactivation of poliovirus. Further testing with four of these water samples showed that enteric viruses from different genera were consistently inactivated in these freshwater samples. Studies on the cause of inactivation were conducted with echovirus type 12 as the model virus. The results revealed that the virucidal agents in the waters tested could not be separated from microorganisms. Any treatment that removed or inactivated microorganisms caused loss of virucidal activity. Microbial growth in a sterilized creek water seeded with a small amount of stream water resulted in concomitant production of virucidal activity. When individual bacterial isolates obtained from a stream were grown in this sterilized creek water, most (22 of 27) produced a large amount of virucidal activity, although the amount varied from one isolate to the next. Active and inactive isolates were represented by both gram-positive and gram-negative organisms. Examination of echoviruses inactivated in stream water revealed that loss of infectivity first correlated with a slight decrease in the sedimentation coefficient of virus particles. The cause appeared to be cleavage of viral proteins, most notably, VP-4 and, to a lesser extent, VP-1. Viral RNA associated with particles was also cleaved but the rate was slower than loss of infectivity. These results suggest that proteolytic bacterial enzymes inactivate echovirus particles in fresh water by cleavage of viral proteins, thus exposing the viral RNA to nuclease digestion.     

Heat inactivation of enteric viruses in dewatered wastewater sludge.

The effect of moisture content on the rates of heat inactivation of enteric viruses in wastewater sludge was determined. The protective effect of raw sludge on poliovirus previously observed (R. L. Ward, C. S. Ashley, and R. H. Moseley, Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 32:339--346, 1976) was found to be greatly enhanced in sludge dewatered by evaporation. Other enteroviruses responded in a similar fashion. This effect did not appear to be due merely to the state of dryness of the sludge samples because in humus-deficient soil, a relatively inert material, the rate of poliovirus inactivation by heat was not significantly altered through dewatering. Instead, this effect appeared to have been caused by protective substances in the sludge, such as detergents, which are concentrated through dewatering. As reported previously (R. L. Ward and C. S. Ashley, Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 34:681-688, 1977; R. L. Ward and C. S. Ashley, Appl. Environ. Microbiol 36:889--897, 1978) raw sludge is not protective of reovirus, but, instead, the ionic detergents in sludge cause the rate of heat inactivation of this virus to be accelerated. Dewatering of sludge, however, was found to partially reverse this virucidal effect. Evidence is presented indicating that this reversal is caused by an unidentified protective substance in sludge also concentrated through dewatering. Finally, it was shown that the effects of raw sludge on heat inactivation of poliovirus and reovirus are greatly reduced by composting, a result that correlated with the degradation of detergents.     

Heat inactivation of enteric viruses in dewatered wastewater sludge.

The effect of moisture content on the rates of heat inactivation of enteric viruses in wastewater sludge was determined. The protective effect of raw sludge on poliovirus previously observed (R. L. Ward, C. S. Ashley, and R. H. Moseley, Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 32:339--346, 1976) was found to be greatly enhanced in sludge dewatered by evaporation. Other enteroviruses responded in a similar fashion. This effect did not appear to be due merely to the state of dryness of the sludge samples because in humus-deficient soil, a relatively inert material, the rate of poliovirus inactivation by heat was not significantly altered through dewatering. Instead, this effect appeared to have been caused by protective substances in the sludge, such as detergents, which are concentrated through dewatering. As reported previously (R. L. Ward and C. S. Ashley, Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 34:681-688, 1977; R. L. Ward and C. S. Ashley, Appl. Environ. Microbiol 36:889--897, 1978) raw sludge is not protective of reovirus, but, instead, the ionic detergents in sludge cause the rate of heat inactivation of this virus to be accelerated. Dewatering of sludge, however, was found to partially reverse this virucidal effect. Evidence is presented indicating that this reversal is caused by an unidentified protective substance in sludge also concentrated through dewatering. Finally, it was shown that the effects of raw sludge on heat inactivation of poliovirus and reovirus are greatly reduced by composting, a result that correlated with the degradation of detergents.     

Direct inactivation of viruses by human granulocyte defensins.

Human neutrophils contain a family of microbicidal peptides known as defensins. One of these defensins, human neutrophil peptide (HNP)-1, was purified, and its ability to directly inactivate several viruses was extensively tested. Herpes simplex virus (HSV) types 1 and 2, cytomegalovirus, vesicular stomatitis virus, and influenza virus A/WSN were inactivated by incubation with HNP-1. Two nonenveloped viruses, echovirus type 11 and reovirus type 3, were resistant to inactivation. Purified homologous peptides HNP-2 and HNP-3 were found to have HSV-1-neutralizing activities approximately equal to that of HNP-1. Inactivation of HSV-1 by HNP-1 depended on the time, temperature, and pH of incubation. Antiviral activity was abrogated by low temperature or prior reduction and alkylation of the defensins. Addition of serum or serum albumin to the incubation mixtures inhibited neutralization of HSV-1 by HNP-1. We used density gradient sedimentation techniques to demonstrate that HNP-1 bound to HSV-1 in a temperature-dependent manner. We speculate that binding of defensin peptides to certain viruses may impair their ability to infect cells.     

Glutaraldehyde inactivation of exotic animal viruses in swine heart tissue.

Glutaraldehyde, 0.2%, in a 1:100 (wt/vol) ratio, inactivated four animal viruses (foot-and-mouth disease, swine vesicular disease, African swine fever, hog cholera) in swine heart tissues during 11-day exposures at 22 to 26 degrees C.     

Evidence that microorganisms cause inactivation of viruses in activated sludge.

Virus loss in activated sludge appeared to be caused by microorganisms. This conclusion is supported by the finding that poliovirus infectivity decreased during incubation in mixed-liquor suspended solids, primarily because of a sedimentable, heat-sensitive component. Furthermore, broth spiked with mixed-liquor suspended solids acquired antiviral activity during incubation.     

Partitioning and inactivation of viruses by the caprylic acid precipitation followed by a terminal pasteurization in the manufacturing process of horse immunoglobulins

Caprylic acid (octanoic acid), has been used for over 50 years as a stabilizer of human albumin during pasteurization. In addition caprylic acid is of great interest, by providing the advantage of purifying mammalian immunoglobulins and clearing viruses infectivity in a single step. Exploiting these two properties, we sequentially used the caprylic acid precipitation and the pasteurization to purify horse hyperimmune globulins used in the manufacturing of Sérocytol. To evaluate the effectiveness of the process for the removal/inactivation of viruses, spiking studies were carried out for each dedicated step. Bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV), pseudorabies virus (PRV), encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) and minute virus of mice (MVM) were used for the virological validation. Our data show that the treatment with caprylic acid 5% (v/v) can effectively be used as well to purify or to ensure viral safety of immunoglobulins. Caprylic acid precipitation was very efficient in removing and/or inactivating enveloped viruses (PRV, BVDV) and moderately efficient against non-enveloped viruses (MVM, ECMV). However the combination with the pasteurization ensured an efficient protection against both enveloped and non-enveloped viruses. So that viruses surviving to the caprylic acid precipitation will be neutralized by pasteurization. Significant log reduction were achieved > or =9 log(10) for enveloped viruses and 4 log(10) for non-enveloped viruses, providing the evidence of a margin of viral safety achieved by our manufacturing process. Its a simple and non-expensive manufacturing process of immunoglobulins easily validated that we have adapted to a large production scale with a programmable operating system.     

Photochemical inactivation of viruses with psoralens: an overview.

In the presence of longwave ultraviolet light, psoralen derivatives photoreact with the nucleic acids within intact viruses and cells. This photoreaction can leave protein antigens and other surface components relatively unmodified, while eliminating the infectivity of a wide range of infectious agents. The kinetics of inactivation differ among RNA and DNA viruses photoreacted with different derivatives of psoralen. The inactivation kinetics are nonlinear as a result of photodegradation of psoralens and the unexplained biphasic inactivation of some viruses. In spite of these complexities, the photoreaction is capable of generating broad safety margins in the disinfection of microbial products under gentle, physiologic conditions. The psoralen photoreaction provides a potential method for inactivating both known and unknown viruses in active blood products. Psoralen-inactivated viruses have already proven useful as noninfectious antigens for use in immunoassays and as successful experimental vaccines.     

Thermal inactivation of foot-and-mouth disease viruses in suspension

The heat resistance of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) strains isolated from outbreaks in Thailand was investigated in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) at 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, and 100 degrees C. The first-order kinetic model fitted most of the observed linear inactivation curves. The ranges of decimal-reduction time (D value) of FMDV strains at 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, and 100 degrees C were 732 to 1,275 s, 16.37 to 42.00 s, 6.06 to 10.87 s, 2.84 to 5.99 s, 1.65 to 3.18 s, and 1.90 to 2.94 s, respectively. The heat resistances of FMDV strains at lower temperature (50 degrees C) were not serotype specific. The effective inactivating temperature is approximately 60 degrees C. Heat resistances of FMDV strains at 90 and 100 degrees C were not statistically different (P > 0.05), while the FMDV serotype O (OPN) appeared to be the most heat resistant at 60 to 80 degrees C. The other observed inactivation curves were linear with shoulder or tailing (biphasic curves). The shoulder effect was mostly observed at 90 and 100 degrees C, while the tailing effect was mostly observed at 50 to 80 degrees C. The adjusted D values in the case of shoulder and tailing effects did not affect the overall estimated heat resistance of these FMDV strains, so even unadjusted D values of deviant inactivation curves were legitimate. The z values of FMDV serotypes O, A, and Asia 1 were 21.78 to 23.26, 20.75 to 22.79, and 19.87 degrees C, respectively. The z values of FMDV strains studied were not statistically significantly different (P > 0.05). The results of this study indicated that the heat resistance in PBS of FMDV strains from Thailand was much less than had been reported for foreign epidemic FMDV strains.     

Photochemical inactivation of viruses and bacteriophage in plasma and plasma fractions.

Transfusion-associated transmission of viral diseases remains a problem. A number of methods have been developed to inactivate viral pathogens in plasma and plasma fractions, including: dry heating, wet heating, solvent-detergent treatment, and immunoaffinity purification. While some of these methods successfully inactivate pathogenic viruses, inactivation may be incomplete or result in damage to labile plasma proteins. We have developed a method of photochemical decontamination (PCD) using psoralens and long wavelength ultraviolet light to inactivate pathogenic viruses. In the present study, a spectrum of model viruses have been added to plasma and plasma fractions to examine the efficiency of photochemical decontamination and the effects on labile plasma coagulation factors. Both RNA and DNA viruses have been inactivated under conditions which permit preservation of coagulation protein function. PCD technology appears to offer a promising solution to decontamination of blood products.