A team of researchers from the Life Sciences and Physical Sciences divisions of the Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST), an autonomous research institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), developed a plasma-based disinfectant that could act as a green and environmentally friendly decontaminant for COVID-19.

The researchers found that plasma formed by cold atmospheric pressure (CAP) can deactivate the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Plasma, the fourth form of matter that makes up the majority of the cosmos, is known as Cold Atmospheric Pressure Plasma when created under controlled conditions in the lab.

According to the Science and Technology Ministry, the scientists used a high voltage electric field to pass plasma-forming gases like Helium, Argon, and Air through, resulting in the formation of stable plasma with a mixture of ions and electrons emitting a pink glow of CAP inside the reaction chamber. Within two minutes of CAP therapy, the short-lived highly reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) created in the plasma completely deactivated the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein. CAP can also deactivate the RNA of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, according to the RT-PCR study, and this disinfection strategy could be used to treat a variety of bacterial and fungal infections. This research has been recently published in the international journal of the RSC (Royal Society of Chemistry) Advances. (ET Healthworld, April 20, 2022)