Revista de agentes antimicrobianos

In Vitro Assessment of the Toxic Effects of an AKWATON based-disinfectant on Human Tissues

Abstract

Oulé MK, Lesage C, Gauvin J, Friesen M, Dickman M, et al.

The purpose of this study is to prove the potential safe use of AKWATON as a new antimicrobial product. Many service products are often removed from the market due to their toxic effects on the human body or to their aggressiveness towards the environment. Antimicrobial products such as disinfectants may contain harmful ingredients that can cause disease. Some disinfecting products are corrosive or irritating; others produce strong odors, which in the long run can cause real health problems. AKWATON is a new disinfectant, member of the family of guanidine polymers.

Its bactericidal, fungicidal and sporicidal properties have been demonstrated and widely documented. In this study, the toxic effects of AKWATON and of three well known commercial antimicrobial products currently on market, were evaluated and compared on various human tissues including eyes, lung, skin and liver cells. The testing were performed using the TB (Trypan blue) and MTT (3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) methods. Cell-cultures and the different tests done, showed that the AKWATON based-disinfectant was much less toxic, killing many fewer cells than the commercial disinfectants. It spared more than 64% of skin cells; 65% of lung cells; 66% of eye cells and 64% of liver cells while some well-known disinfectants currently marketed killed 100% of cells. This study demonstrated that AKWATON can be used as an odorless, colorless, non-corrosive and harmless disinfectant for hospital, agriculture industry, farming, food service and household facilities or as antiseptic.