title: Virucidal activity of chemical biocides against mimivirus, a putative pneumonia agent.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Acanthamoeba polyphaga mimivirus (APMV), the largest known virus, has been studied as a putative pneumonia agent, especially in hospital environments. Despite the repercussions of the discovery of APMV, there has been no study related to the control of APMV and the susceptibility of this virus to disinfectants.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This work investigated the virucidal activity against mimivirus of chemical biocides commonly used in clinical practice for the disinfection of hospital equipment and rooms.
  
  
  METHODS
  APMV was dried on sterilized steel coupons, exposed to different concentrations of alcohols (ethanol, 1-propanol and 2-propanol) and commercial disinfectants (active chlorine, glutaraldehyde and benzalkonium chloride) and titrated in amoebas using the TCID50 value. The stability of APMV on an inanimate surface was also tested in the presence and absence of organic matter for 30 days.
  
  
  RESULTS
  APMV showed a high level of resistance to chemical biocides, especially alcohols. Only active chlorine and glutaraldehyde were able to decrease the APMV titers to undetectable levels. Dried APMV showed long-lasting stability on an inanimate surface (30 days), even in the absence of organic matter.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The data presented herein may help health and laboratory workers plan the best strategy to control this putative pneumonia agent from surfaces and devices.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
authors.forename: Rafael Kroon
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Campos
authors.forename: Ketyllen Reis
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Andrade
authors.forename: Paulo Cesar Peregrino
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Ferreira
authors.forename: Cláudio Antônio
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Bonjardim
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: La Scola
authors.forename: Erna Geessien
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Kroon
authors.forename: Jônatas Santos
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Abrahão
mesh_terms: D004202:Disinfectants / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D050296:Microbial Viability / Q000187:drug effects*; D056686:Mimiviridae / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D004202:Disinfectants