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Photo-oxidation kills bird flu virus in water
An existing water-purification technology, which uses
no chemicals, has been found to kill water-borne avian
influenza.
The technology, which is currently funded by the
US Department of Homeland
Security, uses photo-oxidation to purify water, mimicking the natural water
purification that occurs in the environment.
In a recent study, the technology was found to destroy the H9N9 subtype of
avian influenza in water.
Vortex, the company that owns the patented technology, says
that the H9N9 strain is comparable to the H5N1 subtype identified by the
World Health Organisation as
potentially fatal to humans.
Although a number of popular oxidising agents, such as chlorine, would
reduce the risk of a water-borne outbreak of bird flu, this technology naturally
destroys the virus while eliminating the risks associated with chlorine and
similar agents.
“This study demonstrates the feasibility of inactivating avian influenza A
virus in water without introducing potentially harmful chemicals,†said
University of Minnesota Professor of Virology
Sagar Goyal. “The Vortex technology was shown to inactivate avian influenza
virus in tap water.â€
Vortex is currently under contract with the Department of Homeland Security
to develop chlorine-free water purification systems for municipal use, because
the storage and transportation of chlorine have been identified as potential
terrorism risks.
Editor WorldPoultry
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