Decontamination assessment of Bacillus anthracis, Bacillus subtilis, and Geobacillus stearothermophilus spores on indoor surfaces using a hydrogen peroxide gas generator.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the decontamination of Bacillus anthracis, Bacillus subtilis, and Geobacillus stearothermophilus spores on indoor surface materials using hydrogen peroxide gas.


RESULTS
Bacillus anthracis, B. subtilis, and G. stearothermophilus spores were dried on seven types of indoor surfaces and exposed to > or =1000 ppm hydrogen peroxide gas for 20 min. Hydrogen peroxide exposure significantly decreased viable B. anthracis, B. subtilis, and G. stearothermophilus spores on all test materials except G. stearothermophilus on industrial carpet. Significant differences were observed when comparing the reduction in viable spores of B. anthracis with both surrogates. The effectiveness of gaseous hydrogen peroxide on the growth of biological indicators and spore strips was evaluated in parallel as a qualitative assessment of decontamination. At 1 and 7 days postexposure, decontaminated biological indicators and spore strips exhibited no growth, while the nondecontaminated samples displayed growth.


CONCLUSIONS
Significant differences in decontamination efficacy of hydrogen peroxide gas on porous and nonporous surfaces were observed when comparing the mean log reduction in B. anthracis spores with B. subtilis and G. stearothermophilus spores.


CONCLUSIONS
These results provide comparative information for the decontamination of B. anthracis spores with surrogates on indoor surfaces using hydrogen peroxide gas.
Rogers
J V
JV
Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, OH, OH 43201, USA. rogersjv@battelle.org
Sabourin
C L K
CL
Choi
Y W
YW
Richter
W R
WR
Rudnicki
D C
DC
Riggs
K B
KB
Taylor
M L
ML
Chang
J
J
D001406:Bacillaceae / Q000187:drug effects*; D001408:Bacillus anthracis / Q000187:drug effects; D001412:Bacillus subtilis / Q000187:drug effects; D003252:Construction Materials / Q000382:microbiology; D003666:Decontamination / Q000379:methods*; D004866:Equipment Contamination; D005898:Glass; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008422:Materials Testing / Q000379:methods; D008670:Metals; D010209:Paper; D013171:Spores, Bacterial / Q000187:drug effects; D013784:Textiles / Q000382:microbiology; D014934:Wood
D008670:Metals; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide