news, latest-news, hassan vally, covid, coronavirus, hand sanitiser, immunity
While one can never say never to anything when it comes to COVID-19, the answer to whether COVID-19 will develop resistance to the chemicals in sanitiser is that it is very unlikely. It’s perhaps important to note that I have substituted the word ‘resistance’ for immunity in the question for the simple reason that when we are referring to changes in microorganisms that mean they are no longer affected by agents that usually kill them, this is called ‘antimicrobial resistance’. Antibiotic resistance refers specifically to bacteria acquiring the ability to survive contact with antibiotics that would usually be lethal to them. The changes that occur to bacteria that allow them to survive against antibiotics are generally either physiological or structural. They can allow microorganisms to evade the deadly effects of these agents. The important thing is that antibiotics have to be selectively toxic. That is, since we take them internally they have to be able to kill bacteria without being toxic to us. That means they must be relatively gentle and targeted in the way they act. Sanitisers, on the other hand, are administered externally. Therefore they can afford to be more brutal in their mechanism of killing microorganisms. The chemicals in sanitiser that we use against SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) are very harsh. They kill the virus by attacking vital structural components. The method of killing is more akin to a chemical attack, and this is not something that is easy for SARS-CoV-2 – or any microorganism – to develop the ability to withstand. So you can sleep easy knowing that your stockpile of sanitiser will remain effective, not just against COVID-19, but against a whole range of other microorganisms, and there is not much likelihood of this changing. Whether sanitiser is effective is irrelevant if you don’t actually use it, or don’t use it properly. As we’ve learnt, we should be using sanitiser often and following good hand hygiene practices. This should be our focus rather than whether SARS-CoV-2 might develop resistance to the chemicals in these products. The Fuzzy Logic Science Show is 11am Sundays on 2xx 98.3FM. Send your questions to [email protected] Twitter @FuzzyLogicSci Podcast FuzzyLogicOn2xx.Podbean.com
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While one can never say never to anything when it comes to COVID-19, the answer to whether COVID-19 will develop resistance to the chemicals in sanitiser is that it is very unlikely.
It’s perhaps important to note that I have substituted the word ‘resistance’ for immunity in the question for the simple reason that when we are referring to changes in microorganisms that mean they are no longer affected by agents that usually kill them, this is called ‘antimicrobial resistance’.
Antibiotic resistance refers specifically to bacteria acquiring the ability to survive contact with antibiotics that would usually be lethal to them.
The changes that occur to bacteria that allow them to survive against antibiotics are generally either physiological or structural. They can allow microorganisms to evade the deadly effects of these agents.
The important thing is that antibiotics have to be selectively toxic. That is, since we take them internally they have to be able to kill bacteria without being toxic to us. That means they must be relatively gentle and targeted in the way they act.
Sanitisers, on the other hand, are administered externally. Therefore they can afford to be more brutal in their mechanism of killing microorganisms.
The chemicals in sanitiser that we use against SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) are very harsh. They kill the virus by attacking vital structural components.
The method of killing is more akin to a chemical attack, and this is not something that is easy for SARS-CoV-2 – or any microorganism – to develop the ability to withstand.
So you can sleep easy knowing that your stockpile of sanitiser will remain effective, not just against COVID-19, but against a whole range of other microorganisms, and there is not much likelihood of this changing.
Whether sanitiser is effective is irrelevant if you don’t actually use it, or don’t use it properly. As we’ve learnt, we should be using sanitiser often and following good hand hygiene practices. This should be our focus rather than whether SARS-CoV-2 might develop resistance to the chemicals in these products.
- Hassan Vally is an associate professor in the Department of Public Health at La Trobe University.
The Fuzzy Logic Science Show is 11am Sundays on 2xx 98.3FM.
Send your questions to [email protected] Twitter @FuzzyLogicSci Podcast FuzzyLogicOn2xx.Podbean.com
