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Efficacy of sporicidal wipes for inactivation of a B acillus anthracis surrogate
Author(s) -
Meyer K.M.,
Tufts J.A.,
Calfee M.W.,
Oudejans L.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of applied microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.889
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1365-2672
pISSN - 1364-5072
DOI - 10.1111/jam.12648
Subject(s) - bacillus anthracis , microbiology and biotechnology , chemistry , surrogate endpoint , bacteria , biology , medicine , genetics
Aims To evaluate five commercially available sporicidal wipes and two disinfecting wipes for their ability to inactivate B acillus atrophaeus spores deposited onto various material surfaces. Methods and Results Decontamination efficacy of the wipes was initially tested on glass Petri dishes (150 mm diameter). Following exposure for a specified time of contact, survival of the spores was assessed by quantification of the remaining viable spores, both on the coupon surface and on the towelette itself, with efficacy quantified in terms of mean log reduction. Based on these data, five wipes were down‐selected for evaluation on a larger scale, using 36 × 36 cm coupons of five different material types. Conclusions Results suggest that sodium hypochlorite‐based sporicidal wipes were most effective, having completely inactivated the B acillus spores on the glass Petri dish and several materials. Additionally, results demonstrate that the manufacturer‐prescribed contact times for C lostridium difficile achieved a 6 log 10 reduction of B . atrophaeus spores. Moreover, commercially available disinfecting wipes were not able to kill B acillus spores as evaluated. Significance and Impact of the Study These data show the potential of sporicidal wipes for decontamination of small, contained areas of biological contamination and may help on‐scene coordinators develop remediation plans following a biological terrorism event.