Using C60 fullerenes for photodynamic inactivation of mosquito iridescent viruses

Abstract

This article describes the photodynamic inactivation of mosquito iridescent virus (MIV) Aedes flavescens in the presence of water-soluble C60 fullerenes. It has been observed that the photodynamic inactivation of MIV for about 1h reduces the infectious titre of the virus in large wax-moth larvae Galleria mellonella to 4.5 lg ID50/mL. The influence of the C60 concentration on its anti-viral activity was tested in the concentration range from 1 to 0.001mg/mL. It has been found that C60 is able to inactivate the iridovirus even in low concentrations. Consequently, the findings of this work suggest that photoexcited C60 fullerenes can be successfully used for the inactivation of iridoviruses in biological systems. © 2012 Informa UK, Ltd.