Research and Publications

We have collected a selection of important scientific articles and other research on Far UV-C light and its effect on pathogens and people.
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Far UV-C light (222 nm) efficiently and safely inactivates airborne human coronaviruses

This peer-reviewed article from Scientific Reports, shows that continuous Far UV-C exposure in occupied public locations at the current regulatory exposure limit (~3 mJ/cm²/hour) would result in ~90% viral inactivation in ~8minutes, 95% in ~11minutes, 99% in ~16minutes and 99.9% inactivation in ~25minutes. Thus while staying within current regulatory dose limits, low-dose Far UV-C exposure has the potential to safely provide a major reduction in the ambient level of airborne coronaviruses in occupied public locations.

UV Medico Research

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Far UV-C light: A new tool to control the spread of airborne-mediated microbial diseases

In this peer-reviewed article from Scientific Reports, it is shown for the first time that Far UV-C efficiently inactivates airborne aerosolised viruses, with a very low dose of 2mJ/cm² of 222 nm light inactivating >95% of aerosolised H1N1 influenza virus. Continuous very low dose-rate Far UV-C light in indoor public locations is a promising, safe and inexpensive tool to reduce the spread of airborne-mediated microbial diseases.

UV Medico Research

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Long‐term Effects of 222 nm ultraviolet radiation C Sterilizing Lamps on Mice Susceptible to Ultraviolet Radiation

In a study conducted by Yamano et al., the long-term effects of UV222 irradiation on the skin and eyes were assessed using mice, which are known to be susceptible to UV damage. The results of the study demonstrated that chronic irradiation with UV222 is safe for both the skin and eyes, even at high doses. These findings strongly suggest that UV222 can be safely employed for disinfection purposes while ensuring the safety of human exposure.

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Re-Evaluation of Rat Corneal Damage by Short-Wavelength UV Revealed Extremely Less Hazardous Property of Far-UV-C

This peer-reviewed article evaluated acute corneal damage induced by 222 and 254 nm UV light in albino rats. In the study, no corneal damage was induced by 222 nm UV light, which suggests that 222 nm UV light may not harm rat eyes within the energy range and may be useful for sterilising or preventing infection in the future.

UV Medico Research

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Chronic irradiation with 222 nm UVC light induces neither DNA damage nor epidermal lesions in mouse skin, even at high doses

In this study, chronic irradiation with 222 nm UV-C light was revealed not to induce mutagenic or cytotoxic effects in the epidermis of mice. These results indicated that 222 nm UV-C light emitted from the lamp apparatus (or device), which was designed to attenuate harmful light present in wavelengths of more than 230 nm, represents a promising tool for the reduction of SSI incidence in inpatients and hospital staff.

UV Medico Research

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Ultraviolet Lighting During Orthopaedic Surgery and the Rate of Infection

In this study, Ritter et al. compared the disinfection efficacy of laminar airflow (LAF) and conventional UV light over a nineteen-year period in operating rooms during hip and knee replacement surgeries. The researchers found that the infection rate when using LAF was 1.77 %, but it decreased to only 0.57 % when using conventional UV light. It should be noted that using conventional UV light requires complete gowns and eye protection for staff and patients. This highlights the potential of using UV222 for decontaminating the air in operating rooms and reducing the risk of surgical site infections.

UV Medico Research

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Far-UVC light (222 nm) efficiently and safely inactivates airborne human coronaviruses

A direct approach to limit airborne viral transmissions is to inactivate them within a short time of their production. Germicidal ultraviolet light, typically at 254 nm, is effective in this context but, used directly, can be a health hazard to skin and eyes. By contrast, far-UVC light (207–222 nm) efficiently kills pathogens potentially without harm to exposed human tissues. We previously demonstrated that 222-nm far-UVC light efficiently kills airborne influenza virus and we extend those studies to explore far-UVC efficacy against airborne human coronaviruses alpha HCoV-229E and beta HCoV-OC43. Low doses of 1.7 and 1.2 mJ/cm2 inactivated 99.9% of aerosolized coronavirus 229E and OC43, respectively.

As all human coronaviruses have similar genomic sizes, far-UVC light would be expected to show similar inactivation efficiency against other human coronaviruses including SARS-CoV-2. Based on the beta-HCoV-OC43 results, continuous far-UVC exposure in occupied public locations at the current regulatory exposure limit (~3 mJ/cm2/hour) would result in ~90% viral inactivation in ~8 minutes, 95% in ~11 minutes, 99% in ~16 minutes and 99.9% inactivation in ~25 minutes. Thus while staying within current regulatory dose limits, low-dose-rate far-UVC exposure can potentially safely provide a major reduction in the ambient level of airborne coronaviruses in occupied public locations.

Germicidal Efficiency
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Effectiveness of 222-nm ultraviolet light on disinfecting SARS-CoV-2 surface contamination

Background: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), has emerged as a serious threat to human health worldwide. Efficient disinfection of surfaces contaminated with SARS-CoV-2 may help prevent its spread. This study aimed to investigate the in vitro efficacy of 222-nm far-ultraviolet light (UVC) on the disinfection of SARS-CoV-2 surface contamination.

Methods: We investigated the titer of SARS-CoV-2 after UV irradiation (0.1 mW/cm2) at 222 nm for 10-300 seconds using the 50% tissue culture infectious dose (TCID50). In addition, we used quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction to quantify SARS-CoV-2 RNA under the same conditions.

Results: One and 3 mJ/cm2 of 222-nm UVC irradiation (0.1 mW/cm2 for 10 and 30 seconds) resulted in 88.5 and 99.7% reduction of viable SARS-CoV-2 based on the TCID50 assay, respectively. In contrast, the copy number of SARS-CoV-2 RNA did not change after UVC irradiation even after a 5-minute irradiation.

Conclusions: This study shows the efficacy of 222-nm UVC irradiation against SARS-CoV-2 contamination in an in vitro experiment. Further evaluation of the safety and efficacy of 222-nm UVC irradiation in reducing the contamination of real-world surfaces and the potential transmission of SARS-CoV-2 is needed.

Germicidal Efficiency
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