Panasonic’s nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) technology achieves 99% inactivation of alcohol- and heat-resistant toxins

Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic) (https://holdings.panasonic/global/) announced that it has demonstrated the inactivating effect of nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) technology on endotoxin, which causes aggravation of allergy-like symptoms such as asthma and rhinitis, under the supervision of Masafumi Mukamoto, Professor Emeritus of Osaka Metropolitan University and Visiting Researcher at the University of Hyogo.

According to the 2023 Patient Survey published by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the total number of asthma patients in Japan is approximately 1.85 million.*¹ A wide variety of factors are also known to contribute to exacerbation of asthma. Of these, academic studies suggest that endotoxin is one of contributing factors to the aggravation of allergy-like symptoms such as asthma and rhinitis,*^2, *³ and its presence in house dust*⁴ and in air pollutants such as PM 2.5 and Asian sand dust*^5, *⁶ has been confirmed. Endotoxin is also known they derive from gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli and are resistant to alcohol and heat, rendering inactivation by general disinfection methods more difficult.

Panasonic has demonstrated the inhibitory effect of nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) technology on 20 types of bacteria, and has also partially identified its inhibitory mechanism on bacteria.*⁷ In this study, in order to verify its effectiveness against bacterial toxins, Panasonic has newly verified its effects against endotoxin, which is resistant to alcohol and heat. The results demonstrated that exposure to nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) had an inactivation rate of 99% or higher. Note that this verification was conducted under test conditions and does not attest to effectiveness in actual usage spaces. Also, the test was conducted to verify effectiveness on chemical substances that contribute to the worsening of symptoms, and not on the worsening of the symptoms themselves.

Panasonic is committed to further advancing nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) technology and pursuing its possibilities in order to help society by providing safe, secure spaces.

■Key points of this test

• According to academic research, endotoxin, which is derived from E. coli and is resistant to alcohol and heat, is a substance that should be carefully monitored because it is contained in Asian sand dust, PM 2.5, and house dust, and is suggested to exacerbate allergy-like symptoms such as asthma and rhinitis.
• The results of irradiating endotoxin with nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) and comparing it against alcohol and heat treatment confirm that nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) technology alone is more than 99% effective in inactivating endotoxin. (Test (1))
• The results of endotoxin activity measured by irradiating E. coli with nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) confirmed an inactivation effect of 99% or higher. (Test (2))

Test (1)

• esting organization: Panasonic Corporation*⁸
• Test sample: Standard endotoxin
• Test device: nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) generator
• Test method: A petri dish containing standard endotoxin dissolved in solvent was placed in a 45-liter chamber and exposed to nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) at a position 5 cm from the petri dish for a predetermined length of time.
  Endotoxin activity was measured on the samples after exposure.*⁹
  Samples with and without exposure to nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) were compared, and the residual endotoxin activity rate was calculated.*¹⁰
  In order to compare against exposure to nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water), treatment under the conditions in which bacteria are sterilized (heating at 90°C, 10-minute treatment, and ethanol 80 vol%, 5-minute treatment) were performed respectively, and the residual rate of endotoxin activity was calculated.*¹⁰

Test (2)

• Testing organization: Panasonic Corporation
• Test sample: E. coli
• Test device: nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) generator
• Test method: A petri dish containing E. coli dissolved in solvent was placed in a 45-liter chamber and exposed to nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) at a position 5 cm from the petri dish.
  Endotoxin activity was measured on the samples after exposure.*⁹
  Samples with and without exposure to nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) were compared, and the residual endotoxin activity rate was calculated.*¹⁰

■Test resultsTest results (1)

Below are the results of confirming the residual endotoxin activity rate*¹⁰ for standard endotoxin exposed to nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) for 48 hours, treated with alcohol, and treated with heat, respectively. Only nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) technology showed an inactivation effect of 99% or more.

Test results (2)

The results of confirming the residual endotoxin activity rate*¹⁰ using E. coli exposed to nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) for 48 hours are described below. nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) technology showed an inactivation effect of 99% or more.

■Comments from Masafumi Mukamoto, Professor Emeritus, Osaka Metropolitan University and Visiting Researcher, University of Hyogo*

Endotoxin is a toxin that exists on the surface of gram-negative bacteria such as E. coli. It has various biological activity, and has been suggested to aggravate allergy-like symptoms such as asthma and rhinitis. Endotoxin has been reported as present in air pollutants such as PM 2.5 and Asian sand dust, as well as house dust. Particular attention should be paid to Asian sand dust, as the number of days it is observed increases during spring. In addition, endotoxin is known to be resistant to alcohol and heat, so even if bacterial sterilization is performed, it may not be possible to inactivate endotoxin. Thus, I think it is significant that inactivation of endotoxin by nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) technology was demonstrated in this test.

*Edited from comments received at the request of Panasonic.

■Principle of nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) generation

The atomizing electrode is cooled by a Peltier element, which condenses moisture in the air to create water. Afterwards, a high voltage is applied across the atomizing electrode and the opposite electrode to generate nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) contained in water that contain hydroxyl radicals of approximately 5 to 20 nanometers in size. (Figure 5)

Notes:
*1: Reference: "2023 Patient Survey" Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. https://www.mhlw.go.jp/toukei/saikin/hw/kanja/23/index.html
*2: Reference: M. Berger et al. "Lipopolysaccharide amplifies eosinophilic inflammation after segmental challenge with house dust mite in asthmatics" Allergy, vol. 70, No. 3, pp. 257-264, 2014.
*3: Reference: Braga CR et al. "Nasal provocation test (NPT) with isolated and associated dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Dp) and endotoxin lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in children with allergic rhinitis (AR) and nonallergic controls" J Investig Allergol Clin Immunol., vol. 14, No. 2, pp. 142-8, 2004.
*4: Reference: Peter S. Thorne et al. "Endotoxin Exposure Is a Risk Factor for Asthma The National Survey of Endotoxin in United States Housing" American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, vol. 172, No. 11, pp. 1371-1377, 2005.
*5: Reference: Takamichi Ichinose, "Progress of the research on air pollution (PM 2.5, Asian sand dust, etc.) and allergy" Japanese Journal of Allergology, vol. 63, No. 8, pp. 1085-1094, 2014.
*6: Reference: Yahao Ren et al. "Enhancement of OVA-induced murine lung eosinophilia by co-exposure to contamination levels of LPS in Asian sand dust and heated dust" Allergy Asthma Clin Immunol., vol. 10, No. 1, pp. 30, 2014.
*7: [Press Release] Visual Imaging of Bacterial Inhibition Mechanism by Hydroxyl Radicals Contained in Water in Collaboration with Harvard University (March 29, 2012)
*8: Endotoxin testing and data acquisition were conducted in cooperation with FUJIFILM Wako Bio Solutions Corporation.
*9: Endotoxin testing was conducted in accordance with the "General Rules" and "General Testing Methods" of the Revised Japanese Pharmacopoeia, 18th Edition.
*10: Panasonic’s own calculation of residual endotoxin activity rate = (activity after treatment/untreated activity) x 100

◆A summary of this press release can be found here:
https://www.panasonic.com/global/consumer/nanoe/ja/topics/250306.html

◆Results of research into nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) technology to date can be found here:
https://www.panasonic.com/global/consumer/nanoe/ja.html

About Panasonic Corporation

Panasonic Corporation offers products and services for a variety of living environments, ranging from homes to stores to offices and cities. There are five businesses at the core of Panasonic Corporation: Living Appliances and Solutions Company, Heating & Ventilation A/C Company, Cold Chain Solutions Company, Electric Works Company and China and Northeast Asia Company. The operating company reported consolidated net sales of 3,494.4 billion yen for the year ended March 31, 2024. Panasonic Corporation is committed to fulfilling the mission of Life Tech & Ideas: For the wellbeing of people, society and the planet, and embraces the vision of becoming the best partner of your life with human-centric technology and innovation. Learn more about Panasonic: https://www.panasonic.com/global/about/

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Panasonic’s nanoe™ (hydroxyl radicals contained in water) technology achieves 99% inactivation of alcohol- and heat-resistant toxins 

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