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. 2023 Feb;63(2):288-293.
doi: 10.1111/trf.17238. Epub 2023 Jan 8.

Inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 infectivity in platelet concentrates or plasma following treatment with ultraviolet C light or with methylene blue combined with visible light

Jody Hobson-Peters  1   2 , Alberto A Amarilla  1 , Lina Rustanti  3 , Denese C Marks  3 , Eileen Roulis  3 , Alexander A Khromykh  1   2 , Naphak Modhiran  1 , Daniel Watterson  1   2 , Stefan Reichenberg  4 , Frank Tolksdorf  4 , Chryslain Sumian  5 , Axel Seltsam  6 , Ute Gravemann  7 , Helen M Faddy  3   8
Affiliations

Inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 infectivity in platelet concentrates or plasma following treatment with ultraviolet C light or with methylene blue combined with visible light

Jody Hobson-Peters et al. Transfusion. 2023 Feb.

Abstract

Background: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is unlikely to be a major transfusion-transmitted pathogen; however, convalescent plasma is a treatment option used in some regions. The risk of transfusion-transmitted infections can be minimized by implementing Pathogen Inactivation (PI), such as THERAFLEX MB-plasma and THERAFLEX UV-Platelets systems. Here we examined the capability of these PI systems to inactivate SARS-CoV-2.

Study design and methods: SARS-CoV-2 spiked plasma units were treated using the THERAFLEX MB-Plasma system in the presence of methylene blue (~0.8 μmol/L; visible light doses: 20, 40, 60, and 120 [standard] J/cm2 ). SARS-CoV-2 spiked platelet concentrates (PCs) were treated using the THERAFLEX UV-platelets system (UVC doses: 0.05, 0.10, 0.15, and 0.20 [standard] J/cm2 ). Samples were taken prior to the first and after each illumination dose, and viral infectivity was assessed using an immunoplaque assay.

Results: Treatment of spiked plasma with the THERAFLEX MB-Plasma system resulted in an average ≥5.03 log10 reduction in SARS-CoV-2 infectivity at one third (40 J/cm2 ) of the standard visible light dose. For the platelet concentrates (PCs), treatment with the THERAFLEX UV-Platelets system resulted in an average ≥5.18 log10 reduction in SARS-CoV-2 infectivity at the standard UVC dose (0.2 J/cm2 ).

Conclusions: SARS-CoV-2 infectivity was reduced in plasma and platelets following treatment with the THERAFLEX MB-Plasma and THERAFLEX UV-Platelets systems, to the limit of detection, respectively. These PI technologies could therefore be an effective option to reduce the risk of transfusion-transmitted emerging pathogens.

Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; emerging infectious disease; pathogen inactivation; plasma; platelets; safety; transfusion-transmission.

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Conflict of interest statement

Jody Hobson‐Peters, Lina Rustanti, Helen M. Faddy, Denese C. Marks, and Daniel Watterson received partial funding for this study from Macopharma. Stefan Reichenberg, Frank Tolksdorf and Chryslain Sumian are employed by the company that developed the THERAFLEX UV‐Platelets and THERAFLEX MB‐Plasma systems, Macopharma (Tourcoing, France). Ute Gravemann and Axel Seltsam work for blood donation centers that collaborates with Macopharma on the development of pathogen inactivation systems for platelets and plasma. Alberto A Amarilla, Naphak Modhiran, Alexander A Khromykh and Eileen Roulis report no conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
SARS‐CoV‐2 plaque formation before and after treatment with the THERAFLEX systems detected by immunoplaque assay on Vero cells. Representative plaques formed by SARS‐CoV‐2 at neat (undiluted), 1:10 and 1:100 viral dilutions for untreated samples and undiluted preparations for treated samples, in plasma treated with the THERAFLEX MB‐plasma system using different illumination doses (top, plaques in white) and in PCs treated with the THERAFLEX UV‐platelets system using different illumination doses (bottom, color inverted – Plaques in black)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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