Broad virus inactivation using inorganic micro/nano-particulate materials

Inorganic materials can provide a set of tools to decontaminate solid, liquid or air containing viral particles. The use of disinfectants can be limited or not practical in scenarios where continuous cleaning is not feasible. Physicochemical differences between viruses raise the need for effective formulations for all kind of viruses. In the present work we describe two types of antimicrobial inorganic materials: i) a novel soda-lime glass (G3), and ii) kaolin containing metals nanoparticles (Ag or CuO), as materials to disable virus infectivity. Strong antiviral properties can be observed in G3 glass, and kaolin-containing nanoparticle materials showing a reduction of viral infectivity close to 99%. in the first 10 ​min of contact of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV). A potent virucidal activity is also present in G3 and kaolin containing Ag or CuO nanoparticles against all kinds of viruses tested, reducing more than 99% the amount of HSV-1, Adenovirus, VSV, Influenza virus and SARS-CoV-2 exposed to them. Virucidal properties could be explained by a direct interaction of materials with viruses as well as inactivation by the presence of virucidal elements in the material lixiviates. Kaolin-based materials guarantee a controlled release of active nanoparticles with antiviral activity. Current coronavirus crisis highlights the need for new strategies to remove viruses from contaminated areas. We propose these low-cost inorganic materials as useful disinfecting antivirals in the actual or future pandemic threats.This research was performed with support from The Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) (Project No 202060E109). M.F. is grateful to the Comunidad Autonoma de Madrid for research project No. 2017-T1/BIO-4992 (“Atracción de Talento” Action) cofunded by Universidad Complutense de Madrid. This publication was also supported by the European Virus Archive GLOBAL (EVA-GLOBAL) project that has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program ​under grant agreement 871029. S. R.-R. was supported by the the FPI fellowship funded by Universidad San Pablo CEU. J.A-H. was supported by the PFIS fellowship co-funded by the FEDER/FSE and the ISCIII

Influenza A virus infection alters the resistance profile of gut microbiota to clinically relevant antibiotics

Influenza virus infection affects both lung and intestinal bacterial community composition. Most of the published analyses focus on the characterization of the microbiota composition changes. Here we assess functional alterations of gut microbiota such as nutrient and antibiotic resistance changes during an acute respiratory tract infection. Upon influenza A virus (IAV) infection, cecal microbiota drops accompanied by a decrease in the ability to metabolize some common nutrients under aerobic conditions. At the same time, the cecal community presents an increase in resistance against clinically relevant antibiotics, particularly cephalosporins. Functional characterization of complex communities presents an additional and necessary element of analysis that nowadays is mainly limited to taxonomic description. The consequences of these functional alterations could affect treatment strategies, especially in multimicrobial infections