Mechanism of inactivation of influenza viruses by immobilized hydrophobic polycations

• Main Authors: Hsu, Bryan Boen (Contributor), Wong, Sze Yinn (Contributor), Chen, Jianzhu (Contributor), Klibanov, Alexander M. (Contributor), Hammond, Paula T (Author)
• Other Authors: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Biological Engineering (Contributor), Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Biology (Contributor), Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemical Engineering (Contributor), Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemistry (Contributor), Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT (Contributor), Hammond, Paula T. (Contributor)
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: National Academy of Sciences (U.S.), 2011-07-28T15:24:50Z.
• Subjects: Article
• Online Access: Get fulltext

N,N-Dodecyl,methyl-polyethylenimine coatings applied to solid surfaces have been shown by us to disinfect aqueous solutions of influenza viruses. Herein we elucidate the mechanism of this phenomenon. Infectivity-, protein-, RNA-, and scanning electron microscopy-based experiments reveal that, upon contact with the hydrophobic polycationic coating, influenza viruses (including pathogenic human and avian, both wild-type and drug-resistant, strains) irreversibly adhere to it, followed by structural damage and inactivation; subsequently, viral RNA is released into solution, while proteins remain adsorbed.
MIT/Army Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies (contract DAAD-19-02-D0002)
United States. Army Research Office