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Alpha-synuclein seeds of Parkinson's disease show high prion-exceeding resistance to steam sterilization
- Source :
- Journal of Hospital Infection. 108:25-32
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 2021.
-
Abstract
- Summary Background Cerebral deposition of abnormally misfolded and aggregated alpha-synuclein (αSyn) is a neuropathological hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD). Pathologically aggregated αSyn species of PD (αSynPD) can act, in a ‘prion-like’ manner, as proteinaceous nuclei (‘seeds’) which are capable of self-templated propagation. This has raised concerns that αSynPD seeds transmitted iatrogenically between humans may stimulate αSyn pathologies or clinically harmful effects in the recipients. Effective decontamination when reprocessing medical devices could significantly counteract such risks. Steam sterilization at 134°C is recommended as an essential pathogen inactivation step in many reprocessing guidelines for medical devices, and also shows effectiveness against prions, the self-propagating biological agents long thought to exhibit the highest resistance to steam sterilization. Methods This study examined the reduction in αSynPD seeding activity in brain tissue homogenates from patients with PD after steam sterilization at 134°C using a specifically adapted real-time quaking induced conversion assay. Findings Titres of approximately 1010 50% seeding doses per gram were detected in non-steam-sterilized caudate nucleus tissue of patients with PD by endpoint titration. Five minutes of steam sterilization reduced this titre by only 2.25 ± 0.15 decadic-logarithmic units, with an extension of the sterilization time to 90 min not causing additional inactivation. These findings reveal that αSynPD species are disease-associated biological agents with seeding activity that has higher resistance to steam sterilization than prions. Conclusion The remarkable heat resistance of αSynPD seeds calls for thoroughly validated cleaning and disinfection methods that reliably remove or inactivate possible contaminations of seeding-active αSyn aggregates when reprocessing medical devices.
- Subjects :
- Microbiology (medical)
Hot Temperature
Parkinson's disease
Prions
Iatrogenic Disease
Heat resistance
Brain tissue
030501 epidemiology
Microbiology
03 medical and health sciences
chemistry.chemical_compound
Humans
Medicine
Durable Medical Equipment
Pathogen inactivation
Alpha-synuclein
Disinfection methods
0303 health sciences
030306 microbiology
business.industry
Brain
Sterilization
food and beverages
Parkinson Disease
General Medicine
Sterilization (microbiology)
medicine.disease
Steam sterilization
Steam
Infectious Diseases
chemistry
alpha-Synuclein
Equipment Contamination
0305 other medical science
business
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 01956701
- Volume :
- 108
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Journal of Hospital Infection
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....c11cd8d219f06da5a18250ba3e88e31e