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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, May 2008, p. 3002-3007, Vol. 74, No. 10
0099-2240/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.00076-08
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Survival of Influenza Virus on Banknotes{triangledown}

Yves Thomas,1,2* Guido Vogel,3 Werner Wunderli,1,2 Patricia Suter,2 Mark Witschi,4 Daniel Koch,4 Caroline Tapparel,1 and Laurent Kaiser1,2

Central Laboratory of Virology, Division of Infectious Diseases, University Hospitals of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland,1 Swiss National Reference Center for Influenza, Central Laboratory of Virology, University Hospitals of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland,2 Kantonales Laboratorium Basel-Stadt, Kontrollstelle für Chemie und Biosicherheit, Basel, Switzerland,3 Federal Office of Public Health, Division of Communicable Diseases, Bern, Switzerland4

Received 10 January 2008/ Accepted 13 March 2008

Successful control of a viral disease requires knowledge of the different vectors that could promote its transmission among hosts. We assessed the survival of human influenza viruses on banknotes given that billions of these notes are exchanged daily worldwide. Banknotes were experimentally contaminated with representative influenza virus subtypes at various concentrations, and survival was tested after different time periods. Influenza A viruses tested by cell culture survived up to 3 days when they were inoculated at high concentrations. The same inoculum in the presence of respiratory mucus showed a striking increase in survival time (up to 17 days). Similarly, B/Hong Kong/335/2001 virus was still infectious after 1 day when it was mixed with respiratory mucus. When nasopharyngeal secretions of naturally infected children were used, influenza virus survived for at least 48 h in one-third of the cases. The unexpected stability of influenza virus in this nonbiological environment suggests that unusual environmental contamination should be considered in the setting of pandemic preparedness.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Swiss National Reference Center for Influenza, Central Laboratory of Virology, University Hospitals of Geneva, 24 Rue Micheli-du-Crest, 1211 Geneva 14, Switzerland. Phone: 41 22 372 40 81. Fax: 41 22 372 40 88. E-mail: yves.thomas{at}hcuge.ch

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 21 March 2008.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, May 2008, p. 3002-3007, Vol. 74, No. 10
0099-2240/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.00076-08
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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