Photocatalytic inactivation of bacteriophages by TiO2-coated glass plates under low-intensity, long-wavelength UV irradiation

Abstract

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) was used to evaluate antibacterial activity by titanium dioxide (TiO₂) photocatalysis since 2006. We evaluated photocatalytic inactivation of Qβ and T4 bacteriophages induced by low-intensity, long-wavelength ultraviolet A (UVA; 0.1 mW cm⁻² and 0.001 mW cm⁻²) irradiation on a TiO₂-coated glass plate using the ISO methodology. The results indicated that both bacteriophages were inactivated at 0.001 mW cm⁻²UVA. The intensity of UV light, including long-wavelength light (UVA), is very low in an actual indoor environment. Thus, TiO₂ photocatalysis can be beneficial for inactivating viruses in an indoor environment. Experiments using qPCR and bovine serum albumin degradation assume that viral inactivation is caused by outer viral protein disorder and not by viral RNA reduction by reactive oxygen species produced during TiO₂ photocatalysis. Furthermore, we showed that the ISO methodology for standard testing of antibacterial activity by TiO₂ photocatalysis can be applied to assess antiviral activity.