Israeli startup to donate 120,000 ‘anti-pathogen fabric’ masks to stop virus spread

An Israeli start-up company that developed an anti-pathogen fabric that could be used in masks to stop the spread of coronavirus is donating its first product – some 120,000 masks – to Israeli hospitals, medical professionals and coronavirus patients.

“Sonovia Ltd. is determined to use its novel technology for the good of the State of Israel,” the company said in a release. “In this crucial period, it is hoped that our efforts will help curtail the number of clinical cases of coronavirus we see in Israel in the upcoming weeks and months.”

The Jerusalem Post first wrote about Sonovia in late January, when there were no Israelis diagnosed with the potentially lethal virus. Since then, over 200 locals have contracted the virus and the number is expected to grow.

Now, the company found a local partner to generate its industrialization efforts and Sonovia, whose technology is based on a lab-scale sonochemical process that was developed at Bar-Ilan University, believes, “we have the ability to help prevent the virus from spreading.”

On Sunday, the company imported all of its stored fabric from its R&D line in Germany to its headquarters in Israel and then to a factory in Jerusalem that will produce the masks. Dr. Jason Migdal, a research scientist with Sonovia, told the Post that the masks will be ready by next week.

The masks contain an almost-permanent, ultrasonic, fabric-finishing technology, developed by Sonovia for mechanical impregnation of zinc oxide nanoparticles into textiles.

“The technology is based upon a physical phenomenon called cavitation,” said Migdal. “Sound waves are used to physically infuse desired chemicals onto the structure area of materials, enhancing them with clinically proven antiviral and antibacterial properties.”

Migdal explained that the novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, is spread via aerosol and direct contact. Therefore, antiviral personal protective equipment “are of crucial importance to combat the transmission of this viral epidemic,” he said.

The symptoms of coronavirus are fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties, and people with the virus have a propensity for developing respiratory disease. Migdal said that by wearing the mask, any airborne bacteria will be destroyed on contact with the surface of the mask so the individual is unlikely to get a secondary infection.

Research published about Sonovia differentiates its product from the many antimicrobial fabrics that have been developed and marketed, including the use of silver, which has proven effective but costly. Sonovia uses lower-cost, metal-oxide nanoparticles, including zinc oxide and copper oxide, to impart antibacterial protection. Research conducted through a grant by the European Union, in conjunction with 16 partners from 10 European countries, found the one-step process to be effective. Ultrasonic irradiation causes the formation of antimicrobial metal-oxide nanoparticles and actively impregnates these nanoparticles into textile fibers. Moreover, those fabrics impregnated with the zinc and copper oxides were shown to retain significant antibacterial activity even after 100 wash cycles at 75 degrees Celsius or 65 wash cycles at 92 degrees Celsius.

Metallic nanoparticles have been proposed as a formidable arsenal in the defense against influenza viruses, Migdal said. Research using Sonovia’s textiles has proven them to be effective against methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus and multidrug resistance in bacteria.

A Singaporean lab, which will also receive sample masks from Sonovia, will now test the company’s textile for its level of activity against COVID-19.

When asked why the company would provide these masks, its first-ever produced with this fabric, for free, Migdal said that the company would be providing samples to international businesses in hopes of securing future commercial partners.

Migdal added, however, that “this humanitarian action.” is a