The effect of temperature on persistence of SARS-CoV-2 on common surfaces
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RESEARCH
The effect of temperature on persistence of SARS‑CoV‑2 on common surfaces Shane Riddell* , Sarah Goldie, Andrew Hill, Debbie Eagles and Trevor W. Drew
Abstract Background: The rate at which COVID-19 has spread throughout the globe has been alarming. While the role of fomite transmission is not yet fully understood, precise data on the environmental stability of SARS-CoV-2 is required to determine the risks of fomite transmission from contaminated surfaces. Methods: This study measured the survival rates of infectious SARS-CoV-2, suspended in a standard ASTM E2197 matrix, on several common surface types. All experiments were carried out in the dark, to negate any effects of UV light. Inoculated surfaces were incubated at 20 °C, 30 °C and 40 °C and sampled at various time points. Results: Survival rates of SARS-CoV-2 were determined at different temperatures and D-values, Z-values and half-life were calculated. We obtained half lives of between 1.7 and 2.7 days at 20 °C, reducing to a few hours when temperature was elevated to 40 °C. With initial viral loads broadly equivalent to the highest titres excreted by infectious patients, viable virus was isolated for up to 28 days at 20 °C from common surfaces such as glass, stainless steel and both paper and polymer banknotes. Conversely, infectious virus survived less than 24 h at 40 °C on some surfaces. Conclusion: These findings demonstrate SARS-CoV-2 can remain infectious for significantly longer time periods than generally considered possible. These results could be used to inform improved risk mitigation procedures to prevent the fomite spread of COVID-19. Keywords: Environmental stability, SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19, Survivability Background The World Health Organization (WHO) declared SARSCoV-2 a pandemic on 11th March 2020 and as at the 7th August 2020, there have been over 18.8 million confirmed cases with more than 708,000 reported deaths from SARS-CoV-2 [1]. The transmission of SARS-CoV-2 appears to be primarily via aerosols [2–4] and recent studies have shown that SARS-CoV-2 is able to remain infectious in airborne particles for greater than 3 h [5, 6]. The role of fomites in the current pandemic is yet to be fully determined, although they have been suggested as a potential mode of transmission [7] also reflected by the strong focus on *Correspondence: [email protected] Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness, Geelong, VIC, Australia
hand-washing by WHO and national control schemes. Broadly, viruses have been shown to be readily transferred between contaminated skin and a fomite surface [8], with high contact surfaces such as touchscreens on mobile phones, bank ATMs, airport check-in kiosks and supermarket self-serve kiosks all acting as fomites for the transmission of viruses [9]. Fomite transmission has previously been shown to be a highly efficient procedure, with transmission efficiencies of 33% for both fomite to hand and fingertip to mouth transfer for
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