The Effect of the Incorporation of Heavy Metal Zeolites into 3-D Printed Surgical Guide Resin on the Surface Stability of SARS-CoV-2

Abstract

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) the virus responsible for the COVID-19 global pandemic, spread around the world at an alarming rate. The transmission was of great concern, as was the ability of the virus to survive in the environment for extended periods of time. Zeolites and heavy metals have unique properties that can reduce the risk of infection by inhibiting the transmission of viruses. This study explores the development of a three-dimensional (3-D) printable material integrated with zeolites and heavy metals that would be used to produce healthcare-grade equipment on-demand. The study was conducted by exposing SARS-CoV-2 and human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) to five formulations of heavy metal zeolites integrated into 3-D printed surgical grade resin (SGR). Data were collected using virus plaque assays and luminescent assays to determine the amount of infectious virus present at designated time points. The collected data were analyzed by GraphPad Prism 9 software. When SARS-CoV-2 and HIV-1 are exposed to silver zeolites integrated into 3-D printed SGR, their half-lives are significantly reduced, resulting in a decrease in infectious virus after exposure. We discovered that when silver was integrated at a 10% w/w into the 3-D resin, it caused a 0.528-fold change in the half-life of SARS-CoV-2 compared to SGR alone (p<0.0339). And HIV-1 had a 0.372-fold change in half-life after exposure (p<0.0030). These findings indicate that, with the rapid and low-cost manufacturing ability of 3-D printing, inexpensive materials can be quickly produced that lower the risk of viral transmission.