Vital role of water in longevity of SARS-CoV-2 and enhancing its binding with human cells

Parsafar, Gholamabbas; Reddy, Vinay

Based on our present knowledge on SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is collectively summarized in this work, it is shown that water plays a crucial role in stabilizing the virus, in such a way that its viability may reduce from a few days to a few seconds in the absence of water layer. Water not only provides a protective shell for the virus in which it is enveloped, but enhances its binding with the human cell. Therefore, one may conclude that the dehydration of the hydrated virus makes it much more vulnerable, due to the fact that if it is exposed to many chemicals it will be deactivated; even by particles in air, such as ozone, singlet oxygen and pollutants. Thermodynamically, the dehydration may be facilitated at higher temperature, low humidity, and exposure to deliquescent materials. We have concluded that if the contaminated air passes over or through some water absorbents, like calcium chloride, with enough time contact, the virus is expected to become dehydrated and deactivated shortly afterward. If the time contact is not enough for the deactivation, the air may be exposed to the blue or UVC lights as well. The conclusion is based on the hydrated–dehydrated equilibrium of the coronavirus introduced in this work.