Antiviral Mask To Kill Coronavirus
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Antiviral Mask to Kill Coronavirus on Contact in Development
By University of Kentucky Researchers

A face mask that can kill the COVID-19 virus on contact is being developed by the researchers at the University of Kentucky.

The director of the university’s Center of Membrane Sciences, a chemical engineering professor, Dibakar Bhattacharyya said that he had come up with an idea for a mask that would “capture and deactivate” the virus that causes COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2.

According to the university, to develop the masks, Bhattacharyya has now secured a $150,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and he will serve as the principal investigator on the research team. To create the finished and tested membrane mask, it would take around six months he said.

Bhattacharyya explained that the virus would be killed by the mask as the mask will have enzymes that will separate the protein spikes on coronavirus by getting attached to the protein spikes.

He said, “The novel coronavirus has a crownlike, or coronal, appearance, as it is covered in club-shaped ‘s-protein’ spikes. The virus is able to enter the host cells once in the body through the protein spikes. To kill the virus, proteolytic enzymes that will attach

to the protein spikes of the coronavirus will be included in this new membrane.”

He added that the number of virus particles in the air that could infect others in the vicinity would be reduced by the masks as the masks will capture coronavirus on their surface.

Bhattacharyya said, “We have the capability to create a membrane that can deactivate the virus completely and not just effectively filtering out the novel coronavirus like the N95 mask does. This innovation will also prevent the spreading of the virus along with slowing down the virus. Even to protect against a number of human pathogenic viruses, it would have many future applications.”

He said that while wearing the masks, people would be able to breathe very easily as the masks will be very thin. These antiviral masks to coronavirus would also be able to potentially change colors when coronavirus is detected.

On this project, Bhattacharyya is collaborating with Yinan Wei from the university’s Department of Chemistry and engineering professors Thomas Dziubla and J. Todd Hastings.

Bhattacharyya said, “We have many opportunities to engage in cutting-edge research across disciplines and great resources at our fingertips at the University of Kentucky.”

“For the greater good of humanity, our researchers at the university lend their expertise to solve challenges and work together every single day and not only at a time like this.”

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Antiviral Mask to Kill Coronavirus