Efficacy decametoxin in vitro for quick inactivation of respiratory coronavirus

Abstract

Despite the fact that specific prophylaxis agents have already been widely introduced into medical practice in all countries of the world, and antiviral drugs are being developed and are undergoing the first stages of clinical trials, SARS-CoV-2 continues to spread in the human population. In this regard, an urgent medical problem today is the expansion of the arsenal of effective disinfectants and antiseptics, the action of which would be aimed at the rapid and complete inactivation of extracellular coronavirus, which is a very important element in controlling the spread of COVID-19. The aim of the study was to evaluate the ability of decamethoxin to have a virucidal effect against SARS-COV-2 and other human coronaviruses on the model of respiratory coronavirus IBV (infectious bronchitis virus) with an exposure time of 30, 60 and 120 seconds. Classical and modern virological research methods were used in the work: determination of the cytotoxic effect of decamethoxin in cell culture by the effect on their viability, cultivation, accumulation and determination of the infectious titer of IBV by cytopathic action in cell culture; assessment of the virucidal effect of decamethoxin by the suspension method to determine the residual infectious titer of the virus in cell culture by the method of limiting dilutions. The effectiveness of the antiseptic decamethoxin from the group of quaternary ammonium compounds was studied in relation to the prototype strain of the IBV (infection bronchitis virus) coronavirus family in vitro. It has been established that an isotonic solution of decamethoxin at a concentration of 100 μg/ml completely inactivates 3.0 lg(TCD50/0.1 ml) of the prototype respiratory coronavirus strain with a clinically significant contact time of 30–120 seconds at room temperature(18–24 оС). Decamethoxine has been shown to be an effective, fast-acting antiseptic capable of completely inactivating a prototype coronavirus strain. The revealed virucidal properties of decamethoxine in pharmacopoeially significant concentrations in relation to coronavirus allow to recommend it as an antiseptic in the development of methods for non-specific prevention of coronavirus infection in humans.