Abstract
The aim of this research is to standardize the conditions of a constructed impinger, enabling to evaluate quantitatively the anti-aerosolized H9N2 avian influenza virus (AIV) activity by vapors of a chemically-characterized essential oil blend. The standardization resulted in 100% recovery of the aerosolized H9N2 virus when the impinger’s conditions were set at aerosolized viral particles count of 1.2 × 106/c.c. of Tryptose Phosphate Broth, temperature of 35°C, average micelle diameter of 44.3 μm, negative pressure of 6 mbar, air-suspension time of H9N2 virus of 1.5 min, collection chamber and its transport medium volumes of 250 cc and 25 cc, respectively. The adoption of the above standardized conditions, with an inclusion of vaporized essential oil (EO) at 1.0 × 10-4 μl EO/μl volume of the pulverization chamber, and contact times of 0.5-1.5 min with the H9N2 virus, resulted in 84.6% reduction in viral titer at 1.5 min contact time, compared to the control virus, deprived from contact with vaporized EO (P<0.05). This new finding will help in future investigations related to application of safe essential oils in reduction of air-suspended influenza virus in closed systems harboring domestic animals and human populations.
Highlights
The avian influenza virus (AIV) of subtype H9N2, listed by the World Health Organization (WHO) under zoonotic subtypes of AIV, had an economic burden on both animals and humans [1]
The major variables that need to be optimized, targeting a maximum recovery of the aerosolized virus, are the viral particle count per unit volume of the pulverization chamber, the magnitude of the negative pressure created by the vacuum pump, air-suspension time of aerosolized virus before it is vacuumed towards the collection flask, and the volumes of the collection chamber and its contained viral transport liquid medium [14,15,16,17,18,19,20]
Previous workers reported the success in recovery of aerosolized viruses based on specific viral density in a certain volume of the aerosolization chamber [29,30,31,32], the appropriate nature and volume of the carrier in the aerosolized particles that enable the sustainability of the viral viability [33,34,35], the role of the temperature in the pulverization chamber [36,37,38], the appropriate negative pressure that carries the virus from the pulverization chamber towards a proper nature of the transport medium in the collection chamber [13,39]
Summary
The avian influenza virus (AIV) of subtype H9N2, listed by the World Health Organization (WHO) under zoonotic subtypes of AIV, had an economic burden on both animals and humans [1]. The significant economic losses in domestic poultry and other animals, due to H9N2 and other subtypes such as the H5 and H7, resulted in development of related vaccines [3]; The inclusion of such vaccines in control programs created an immune pressure in the host against these viruses, that led to emergence of escape mutants with higher pathogenicity on both humans and vaccinated animals [4] This critical public health situation, due to zoonotic influenza viruses, required a supplemental approach to vaccination, attempting to inactivate or reduce significantly the viral load in the air, so that the immune system of the vaccinated host can handle the reduced exposure below the infective dose of these viruses [5]. The major variables that need to be optimized, targeting a maximum recovery of the aerosolized virus, are the viral particle count per unit volume of the pulverization chamber, the magnitude of the negative pressure created by the vacuum pump, air-suspension time of aerosolized virus before it is vacuumed towards the collection flask, and the volumes of the collection chamber and its contained viral transport liquid medium [14,15,16,17,18,19,20]
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