Photosensitization of Hepatitis A Virus and Other Non-Enveloped RNA Viruses by Meso-Substituted Porphyrins in Water and Human Plasma

Abstract

Some viruses that cause disease in humans are transmissible by consumption of contaminated water or through the transfusion of blood or its products. Human viruses such as hepatitis A virus (HAV) and parvovirus B19 (PVB19) have caused disease or have been detected in drinking water9 or in blood products such as pooled plasma15 and clotting factor11,18,21. HAV and PVB19 are small (22–27 nm), non-enveloped human viruses that contain ribonucleic acid or deoxyribonucleic genomes, respectively. A residual risk of infection from these agents is always present, because the effectiveness of bairiers (e.g., blood donor exclusion17, microbiological testing, inactivation or treatment techniques14,16) against HAV and other viral pathogens for the prevention of contaminated blood products and water from reaching patients and consumers is finite. Non-enveloped viruses such as HAV are resistant to the removal and inactivation procedures used in both water safety19,25 and transfusion medicine16. Procedures in transfusion medicine with demonstrated efficacy against lipid-enveloped viruses such as the human immunodeficiency virus, and hepatitis B and C viruses3 are ineffective against HAV, PVB19, and perhaps other viruses with similar biological features. Hence, alternative methods for virus inactivation in water and in blood components are needed.