UV-C irradiation is highly effective in inactivating SARS-CoV-2 replication

• Main Authors: Mara Biasin, Andrea Bianco, Giovanni Pareschi, Adalberto Cavalleri, Claudia Cavatorta, Claudio Fenizia, Paola Galli, Luigi Lessio, Manuela Lualdi, Enrico Tombetti, Alessandro Ambrosi, Edoardo Maria Alberto Redaelli, Irma Saulle, Daria Trabattoni, Alessio Zanutta, Mario Clerici
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Nature Publishing Group 2021-03-01
• Series: Scientific Reports
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-85425-w

Abstract The potential virucidal effects of UV-C irradiation on SARS-CoV-2 were experimentally evaluated for different illumination doses and virus concentrations (1000, 5, 0.05 MOI). At a virus density comparable to that observed in SARS-CoV-2 infection, an UV-C dose of just 3.7 mJ/cm2 was sufficient to achieve a more than 3-log inactivation without any sign of viral replication. Moreover, a complete inactivation at all viral concentrations was observed with 16.9 mJ/cm2. These results could explain the epidemiological trends of COVID-19 and are important for the development of novel sterilizing methods to contain SARS-CoV-2 infection.