Virus Stabilization with Enhanced Porous Superabsorbent Polymer (PSAP) Beads for Diagnostics and Surveillance

The continuous outbreaks of viral pathogens raise tremendous challenges to public health. Early detection of viruses is essential to prevent and control their associated diseases. Due to the rapid degradation of viruses in the absence of host organisms, the handling, transport, and storage of virus samples without refrigeration are extremely challenging. In this study, we apply bovine serum albumin (BSA)-modified porous superabsorbent polymer (PSAP) beads for encapsulation and stabilization of viruses. The shelf life of the enveloped virus Phi6 and nonenveloped virus MS2 with or without PSAP treatment has been evaluated during storage at different temperatures. Under the tested conditions, the PSAP/ BSA beads can lower the infectivity reduction rate constant by up to 35-and 13 folds for Phi6 and MS2, respectively. In addition, the PSAP/BSA beads can achieve excellent RNA recovery efficiencies under room temperature storage for both single-stranded and double-stranded RNA genome structures, which are comparable to those of refrigeration storage. This study also elucidates that the immobilization of viruses on polymer surfaces is a critical stabilization mechanism of the PSAP treatment. Overall, this low-cost and energy-saving technology eliminates the temperature regulations for virus sample storage and expands the utility of large-scale virus surveillance.

Automated summary

The continuous outbreaks of viral pathogens pose significant challenges to public health. This study utilizes bovine serum albumin-modified porous superabsorbent polymer beads to encapsulate and stabilize viruses, eliminating the need for temperature regulations in virus sample storage.