An independent study has determined that Ovation Science’s (OVAT.C) Dermsafe hand sanitizer lotion is effective against one of the various human coronaviruses, the beta coronavirus strain OC43, a relative of the SARCS-CoV-2 virus, that demonstrated a 99.97% reduction rate in viral loads at two time points.
DermSafe is a hand sanitizer made without alcohol. It doesn’t dry and protects with the persistence of chlorhexidine gluconate, a compound used as presurgical soap because of its germ killing ability. DermSafe also uses Invisicare, a polymer delivery system that acts as a delivery system for drugs to the skin.
“As we prepare to return to work, go back to school, attend sporting events and generally return to our normal life, we need to have reliable products that provide a much-needed level of protection for our employees and our families. We have proven in our past studies that DermSafe is effective against various envelope viruses. Now we have significantly added to this data by successfully completing this study and thereby broadened the known protection abilities of DermSafe to include a human coronavirus,” said Terry Howlett, president of Ovation.
The study’s purpose was to determine whether or not Ovation’s DermSafe hand sanitizer could kill a human beta coronavirus strain. The results were that it could and within five minutes, via the standardized test method called “Standard Test Method to Assess the Activity of Microbicides against Viruses in Suspension” because science has to add a longwinded test name to everything or it isn’t science. It involved putting the product in a vial, adding the virus for an exposure of one minute and then five minutes, and then measuring how long it took to kill the virus.
There’s a rising global demand for product testing to help fight COVID-19, but there aren’t many qualified laboratories to help meet the demand for vaccine and treatments. The American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM) provides chemical standards and has over 12,000 of its ASTM standards using globally to improve product quality, enhance health and safety and strength market access and trade.
—Joseph Morton
