June 24, 2021
Comparison Of HOCl And HOBr For Efficacy Of Inactivation Of Scrapie Prions, MS2 Bacteriophage And Various Microbes
Introduction
Expectations of chemical decontamination measures for medical instrumentation and surfaces in hospitals have been eroded by accumulating evidence that certain commonly used formulations are not reliably effective for the full spectrum of contemporary infection control challenges (e.g., HPV, infectious proteins, Candida auris). Hypochlorous acid (HOCl) has been shown to rapidly inactivate infectious prions and MS2 bacteriophage. However, hypobromous acid (HOBr) containing mixtures have been reported to be more potent biocides. To directly compare the biological properties of HOCl and HOBr we characterized the hypohalous acids using analytical spectroscopy and spectrophotometry prior to their use. HOCl and HOBr were tested for efficacy against Scrapie Prions, MS2 bacteriophage, E. coli, S. aureus and A. niger.
Characterization of HOCl and HOBr Solution
Figure 1.  Characterization of HOCl and HOBr by UV-Visible and Raman spectroscopy at 22 °C. A). UV-Vis spectra of 147 ppm HOCl at pH 3.7, -OCl at pH 11.8 and a mixture of HOCl and -OCl at pH 7.0. B). UV-VIS spectra of HOCl (pH 4.0, 3.0 mM),  HOBr (pH 6.2, 3.0 mM) , and OBr- (pH 11.8, 3.0 mM). C). Raman spectra of HOCl (5.3 mM). D). Raman spectra of HOBr (1.8 mM).

Figure 2. Stability of HOCl. A). Pseudo first order plot of the temperature dependence of HOCl at 22 °C, pHinitial = 4; 52 °C, pHinitial = 4; 70 °C, pHinitial = 4; and 70 °C, pHinitial = 7.  B). ORP measurements of HOCl solutions at 22 °C, pHinitial = 4; 52 °C, pHinitial = 4; 70 °C, pHinitial = 4; and 70 °C, pHinitial = 7. C). pH values of HOCl solutions at 22 °C, pHinitial = 4; 52 °C, pHinitial = 4; 70 °C, pHinitial = 4; and 70 °C, pHinitial = 7.


Efficacy of HOCl and HOBr Against Microbes, MS2 Bacteriophage and Scrapie Prions
Figure 4. Antimicrobial efficacy comparison of HOBr and HOCl. A). E. coli, 20 s exposure. B). S. aureus, 40 s exposure. C). A. niger, 40 s exposure. HOBr = blue; HOCl = black.

Figure 5. Mean Log10 Reduction values (±SD) disinfection of dried MS2 bacteriophage on stainless steel coupons at varied concentrations of HOCl and HOBr after 5 minutes of contact time.
