Inactivation of Ebola virus with a surfactant nanoemulsion.

Hemorrhagic fever caused by Ebola virus (EBO) is a highly contagious infection. This necessitates that the contaminated instruments, clothes, and hospital premises must be completely disinfected. Nanoemulsions are a new form of disinfectant composed of detergents and vegetable oil suspended in water. The antiviral activity of nanoemulsion ATB has been investigated against EBO. The nanoemulsion was tested against two preparations of EBO (strain Zaire) obtained from Vero cell culture fluid (EBO-zc) and from blood of infected monkeys (EBO-zb). The nanoemulsion ATB was virucidal against both preparations of EBO, inactivating the purified virus within 20 min even when diluted 1:100 with the growth medium. Inactivation of the virus in tissue preparations was also complete, but required 1:10 dilutions with media or higher. After treatment with ATB (10 and 1% concentrations), no EBO was apparent even after two passages in Vero cell culture. These data indicate that the nanoemulsion is an effective disinfectant for EBO. Because of the excellent biocompatibility of nanoemulsions, studies are planned to determine whether the nanoemulsion-killed virus is suitable for developing a vaccine against EBO.

[Effect of an infections dose of the Ebola virus on survivability and immunologic indicators in guinea pigs]. / Vliianie infitsiruiushchikh doz virusa Ebola na vyzhivaemost' i immunologicheskie pokazateli u morskikh svinok.

Analysis of the time course of immunological parameters in intact guinea pigs and animals immunized with inactivated Ebola virus (EV) inoculated with high and low doses of EV strain lethal for guinea pigs showed that high doses induced a higher resistance of the lymphocytic component of immunity than low doses, but activation of the neutrophil phagocytosis was far less expressed after high doses than after low ones. This indicates a qualitative effect of the infective dose of EV on the development of immunological reactions in animals, which modifies the ratio between the lymphocytic and neutrophilic components of immunity.

[Methods for controlling colonization of air and laboratory surfaces by pathogens of certain especially dangerous viral infections]. / Metody kontrolia obsemenennosti vozdukha i poverkhnostei pomeshchenii vozbuditeliami nekotorykh osobo opasnykh virusnykh infektsii.

Regular check-ups of the laboratory environment (air and working surfaces) for contamination with the objects of investigations are obligatory for laboratories working with viruses causing grave diseases, such as Ebola, Marburg, and Machupo fevers and Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis. Methods for indication and identification of these agents have been developed and experimentally tried.

[Isolation of purified Ebola virus]. / Poluchenie ochishchennogo virusa ébola.

Purified concentrates of Ebola virus were prepared by two methods, adsorption on polyethylenglycol-600 followed by ultracentrifugation in sucrose density gradient and ultrafiltration. The ultrafiltration method permits preparation of concentrated Ebola virus with better preserved virion structure and infective activity than the traditional method.

[Preparation of rabbit antiserum to Ebola virus]. / Poluchenie krolich'ikh antisyvorotok v virusu ébola.

Humoral immunity of rabbits insusceptible to Ebola virus infection were studied after challenge with infectious Ebola virus and inactivated antigen of this virus. Administration of Ebola virus antigen induced the production of specific antibodies in proportion with the antigen dose injected.