Styles, C. T. et al. (2023) Propylene glycol inactivates respiratory viruses and prevents airborne transmission. EMBO Molecular Medicine, 15(12), e17932. (doi: 10.15252/emmm.202317932) (PMID:37970627) (PMCID:PMC10701621)
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Abstract
Viruses are vulnerable as they transmit between hosts, and we aimed to exploit this critical window. We found that the ubiquitous, safe, inexpensive and biodegradable small molecule propylene glycol (PG) has robust virucidal activity. Propylene glycol rapidly inactivates a broad range of viruses including influenza A, SARS‐CoV‐2 and rotavirus and reduces disease burden in mice when administered intranasally at concentrations commonly found in nasal sprays. Most critically, vaporised PG efficiently abolishes influenza A virus and SARS‐CoV‐2 infectivity within airborne droplets, potently preventing infection at levels well below those tolerated by mammals. We present PG vapour as a first‐in‐class non‐toxic airborne virucide that can prevent transmission of existing and emergent viral pathogens, with clear and immediate implications for public health.
| Item Type: | Articles |
|---|---|
| Additional Information: | RSE and CTS are supported by a Royal Society-Wellcome Trust SirHenry Dale Fellowship (208790/Z/17/Z). JSO is supported by the MedicalResearch Council, part of United Kingdom Research and Innovation (MRC/UKRI) (MC_UP_1201/4). CL is supported by MRC/UKRI Centre for VirusResearch (MC_UU_12014). AB is supported by a Royal Society-WellcomeTrust Sir Henry Dale Fellowship (213437/Z/18/Z). JG is supported by a RoyalSociety-Wellcome Trust Sir Henry Dale Fellowship (107653/Z/15/Z). RM wassupported by a Royal Society of Chemistry Studentship. This study wasconducted as part of G2P-UK National Virology consortium funded by MRC/UKRI (MR/W005611/1). The influenza virus transmission tunnel was designedand developed with funding from NC3R. The Oxford Nanoimager wasfunded by an MRC Capital Award. |
| Status: | Published |
| Refereed: | Yes |
| Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: | Grove, Dr Joe and Lewis, Miss Charlotte |
| Creator Roles: | |
| Authors: | Styles, C. T., Zhou, J., Flight, K. E., Brown, J. C., Lewis, C., Wang, X., Vanden Oever, M., Peacock, T. P., Wang, Z., Millns, R., O'Neill, J. S., Borodavka, A., Grove, J., Barclay, W. S., Tregoning, J. S., and Edgar, R. S. |
| College/School: | College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity |
| Journal Name: | EMBO Molecular Medicine |
| Publisher: | EMBO Press |
| ISSN: | 1757-4676 |
| ISSN (Online): | 1757-4684 |
| Published Online: | 16 November 2023 |
| Copyright Holders: | Copyright © 2023 The Authors |
| First Published: | First published in EMBO Molecular Medicine 15(12):e17932 |
| Publisher Policy: | Reproduced under a Creative Commons licence |
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