Doctors recommend wearing protective masks indoors during the coronavirus pandemic, although they are far from ideal as they cannot provide complete protection. Therefore, researchers are now working on creating a mask that could destroy the SARS-CoV-2 virus upon contact with it.
Touching your eyes, nose, or mouth, even while wearing a mask, carries the risk of contracting the coronavirus, as it can be present on any surfaces you touch, including the mask.
Researchers at the University of Kentucky are currently developing the outer layer of a protective mask, which could include a membrane with enzymes capable of trapping and killing the virus. The enzymes attach to a component of SARS-CoV-2 that sticks to human cellsβprotein spikesβand separate them. As a result, the virus will be destroyed upon contact with this layer of the mask.
βProtein spikes help the virus to enter the host cells of the body. This new membrane will include proteolytic enzymes that can attach to the protein spikes of the coronavirus and separate them, killing the virus, βDibakar Bhattacharya, professor of chemical engineering (Dibakar Bhattacharyya, pictured above), who heads the Center for Membrane Sciences at the University of Kentucky, told Newsweek in an interview.
The scientist explained that the mask would also be able to remove viral particles in the air, which could be an added benefit of the mask. βThis innovation will further slow down and even prevent the spread of the virus. It will also have the potential to protect against a range of other human pathogenic viruses in the future,β Bhattacharya says.
The National Science Foundation under the US government allocated Bhattacharya a $160 grant for this development. According to the scientist, it will take about six months to create and test a membrane protective mask.
Source: 3dnews.ru