Journal Article Epublish
PubMed: 40149084 DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics14030273
Virucidal Activity of Lemon Juice Against Feline Calicivirus, Surrogate of Norovirus.
Antibiotics (Basel) 14(3)
Authors: Gianvito Lanave, Francesco Pellegrini, Cristiana Catella, Helena Mateos, Gerardo Palazzo, Arturo Gentile, Georgia Diakoudi, Matteo Burgio, Maria Tempesta, Vito Martella, Michele Camero
Affiliations
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University Aldo Moro of Bari, 70010 Valenzano, Italy.
- Department of Chemistry and CSGI (Centre for Colloid and Surface Science), University Aldo Moro of Bari, 70121 Bari, Italy.
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Veterinary Medicine, 1078 Budapest, Hungary.
Abstract
Noroviruses are a major cause of acute gastroenteritis, often transmitted through contaminated food and water. In this study, lemon juice (LJ), rich in citric acid (CA) and flavonoids, was tested against Feline Calicivirus (FCV), used as a surrogate of human norovirus. Significant virucidal activity was observed for pure LJ (pH = 2.3), with a reduction in viral titers as high as 4.50 log TCID/50 µL after 30 s and complete inactivation after 1 min. LJ also showed limited virucidal activity at a dilution of 1:2000 (pH = 6.7), with a reduction in viral titer of 0.75 log TCID/50 µL. CA (at the same molarity as CA in pure LJ and adjusted to pH = 2.3) exhibited virucidal effects comparable to pure LJ, with a decrease in viral titers as high as 3.75 log TCID/50 µL, whilst diluted CA (pH = 6.7) did not show significant effects. This study demonstrated the virucidal efficacy of LJ, suggesting the role of pH and, eventually, of LJ bioactive compounds against a norovirus surrogate. Due to its large use in food preparation, LJ has the potential to enhance the safety of raw food. Also, broader applications in personal hygiene and surface disinfection could be devised.
MeSH
Hygiene, Citric Acid, Calicivirus, Feline, Food, Disinfection, Norovirus