TY - JOUR
T1 - Investigation of the effects of an ultraviolet germicidal irradiation system on concentrations of aerosolized surrogates for common veterinary pathogens
AU - Pearce-Walker, Jennifer I.
AU - Troup, Daniel J.
AU - Ives, Rebecca
AU - Ikner, Luisa A.
AU - Rose, Joan B.
AU - Kennedy, Melissa A.
AU - Verhougstraete, Marc P.
N1 - Funding Information:
Funded by PetAirapy LLC. PetAirapy LLC provided the UVGI bulbs, and employees acted as consultants for simulated HVAC system design, but did not contribute to study design or to data collection, analysis, or interpretation.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020, American Veterinary Medical Association. All rights reserved.
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - OBJECTIVE To determine whether exposure to UV germicidal irradiation (UVGI) reduces concentrations of viable aerosolized microorganisms (attenuated strains of common veterinary pathogens) in a simulated heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system. SAMPLE 42 air samples seeded with bacteriophage MS2 or attenuated strains of Bordetella bronchiseptica, feline calicivirus, feline herpesvirus-1, canine parvo-virus, or canine distemper virus (6/microorganism) or with no microorganisms added (6). PROCEDURES A simulated HVAC unit was built that included a nebulizer to aerosolize microorganisms suspended in phosphate-buffered water, a fan to produce airflow, 2 UVGI bulb systems, and an impinger for air sampling. Ten-min-ute trials (3 with UVGI, 3 without UVGI, and 1 negative control) were conducted for each microorganism. Impingers collected microorganisms into phosphate-buffered water for subsequent quantification with culture-based assays. Results for samples yielding no target microorganisms were recorded as the assay’s lower limit of detection. Statistical analysis was not performed. RESULTS The UVGI treatment resulted in subjectively lower concentrations of viable MS2, B bronchiseptica, and canine distemper virus (arithmetic mean ± SD log10 microorganism reduction, 2.57 ± 0.47, ≥ 3.45 ± 0.24, and ≥ 1.50 ± 0.25, respectively) collected from air. Feline herpesvirus-1 was detected in only 1 sample without and no samples with UVGI treatment. Feline calicivirus and canine parvovirus were not detectable in any collected samples. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Results for some surrogates of veterinary pathogens suggested a potential benefit to supplementing manual disinfection practices with UVGI-based air cleaning systems in animal care environments. Further research is needed to investigate the utility of UVGI in operating HVAC systems. (Am J Vet Res 2020;81:506–513).
AB - OBJECTIVE To determine whether exposure to UV germicidal irradiation (UVGI) reduces concentrations of viable aerosolized microorganisms (attenuated strains of common veterinary pathogens) in a simulated heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system. SAMPLE 42 air samples seeded with bacteriophage MS2 or attenuated strains of Bordetella bronchiseptica, feline calicivirus, feline herpesvirus-1, canine parvo-virus, or canine distemper virus (6/microorganism) or with no microorganisms added (6). PROCEDURES A simulated HVAC unit was built that included a nebulizer to aerosolize microorganisms suspended in phosphate-buffered water, a fan to produce airflow, 2 UVGI bulb systems, and an impinger for air sampling. Ten-min-ute trials (3 with UVGI, 3 without UVGI, and 1 negative control) were conducted for each microorganism. Impingers collected microorganisms into phosphate-buffered water for subsequent quantification with culture-based assays. Results for samples yielding no target microorganisms were recorded as the assay’s lower limit of detection. Statistical analysis was not performed. RESULTS The UVGI treatment resulted in subjectively lower concentrations of viable MS2, B bronchiseptica, and canine distemper virus (arithmetic mean ± SD log10 microorganism reduction, 2.57 ± 0.47, ≥ 3.45 ± 0.24, and ≥ 1.50 ± 0.25, respectively) collected from air. Feline herpesvirus-1 was detected in only 1 sample without and no samples with UVGI treatment. Feline calicivirus and canine parvovirus were not detectable in any collected samples. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Results for some surrogates of veterinary pathogens suggested a potential benefit to supplementing manual disinfection practices with UVGI-based air cleaning systems in animal care environments. Further research is needed to investigate the utility of UVGI in operating HVAC systems. (Am J Vet Res 2020;81:506–513).
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U2 - 10.2460/ajvr.81.6.506
DO - 10.2460/ajvr.81.6.506
M3 - Article
C2 - 32436797
AN - SCOPUS:85085190913
VL - 81
SP - 506
EP - 513
JO - American Journal of Veterinary Research
JF - American Journal of Veterinary Research
SN - 0002-9645
IS - 6
ER -