American Association for Aerosol Research - Abstract Submission

AAAR 38th Annual Conference
October 5 - October 9, 2020

Virtual Conference

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Survival of Viruses in Droplets as a Function of Relative Humidity, pH, and Salt, Protein, and Surfactant Concentrations

Kaisen Lin, Chase Schulte, LINSEY MARR, Virginia Tech

     Abstract Number: 3
     Working Group: The Role of Aerosol Science in the Understanding of the Spread and Control of COVID-19 and Other Infectious Diseases

Abstract
Successful transmission of certain infectious diseases requires that pathogens survive (i.e., remain infectious) in the environment, outside the host. The survival of viruses in droplets is known to depend on their chemical composition. However, the effect of individual components of the droplet solution on the viability of viruses has not been extensively explored. We investigated the effects of salt, protein, surfactant, and pH on the viability of viruses in stationary droplets at 20%, 50%, and 80% relative humidity (RH). Results showed that the viability of MS2, a non-enveloped virus, was generally higher than that of Φ6, an enveloped virus, in droplets after 1 hour. Both RH and the chemical composition of droplets greatly influenced virus viability. In general, RH and pH had the largest effects on viability. Consistent with our previous work, virus viability tended to be lowest at intermediate to high RH. The survival of MS2 was similar in droplets with different initial pH values, but the viability of Φ6 was significantly reduced in acidic and basic droplets compared to neutral ones. The presence of bovine serum albumin (BSA), a protein derived from cows, protected both MS2 and Φ6 in droplets. The effects of sodium chloride and the surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate were variable by RH level and virus type. The results demonstrate that the viability of viruses is determined by the chemical composition of carrier droplets, environmental factors, and possibly changes in the spatial distribution of viruses in droplets. These findings emphasize the importance of understanding the chemical composition of carrier droplets in order to predict the persistence of viruses contained in them and provide insight into infectious disease transmission.