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It is virtually impossible to contract Covid-19 if you come into contact with stainless steel contaminated with the virus and its variants, new research findings show.
The findings show that the new variants of the coronavirus do not survive for more than three hours on stainless steel surfaces. This allays fears that the new variants are more transmissible than the primary (predecessor) virus.
The new variants are B.1.17 and B.1.351 while the predecessor used in the study is EPI_ISL_407073, the variation of the primary (original) virus found in England.
Each country, or region, happens to have its own variation of the primary coronavirus.
The research findings published on Friday on the preprint platform, bioRxiv, indicate that the two variants, including the primary coronavirus, exhibit an initial "sharp drop".
The drop in viability further decreased after two-and-a-half hours of drying.
“The rate of decrease in viability reduced after the drying process, with all variants following a similar trend in recovery of viable virus,” reads the research.
Titled, A comparison of Persistence of SARS-CoV-2 Variants on Stainless Steel, the research was compiled by seven experts in infectious disease led by Thomas Pottage from the Public Health England, National Infection Service.
The research, however, found some significant difference between the variants and the predecessor virus during the drying process. There was no significant difference when the two variants were compared.
The experts say they used high suspensions of coronavirus variants to allow the detection of small differences in recovered viability.
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