Ultraviolet Radiation on SARS-CoV2

Just sharing my thoughts on the impact of Ultraviolet (UV) light in sunlight on deactivating the Coronavirus.

I've read articles and news reports saying sunlight doesn't kill the virus. I think they wrote such simply because Trump said it did.

They mentioned the various wavelengths of UV light and how only the shortest are effective at deactivating the virus. They only offered an opinion about its lack of effectiveness against SARS-CoV2 citing past studies loosely relevant to back various points of their opinion. But they did not themselves study the effect of sunlight on the virus.
There are three bands (range of wavelengths) of UV light identified based on their interactions with biological material. Understand that a band is a range of wavelengths. The shorter wavelengths are the most dangerous to genetic material. However, the shorter the wavelength the easier it is absorbed in the stratosphere. So the claims are that sunlight doesn't kill the virus.
I disagree. Our skin, designed/evolved to protect against sunlight, isn't enough to protect the genetic material inside our skin cells from UV damage ( I'm talking 10-20 minutes of exposure is enough to do damage, according to a trusted oncologist). If it wasn't for our cellular repair mechanisms our species probably would have died out from skin cancer long ago (skin cancer comprises ~80% of all cancer cases).
Regardless, sunlight kills many viruses. And SARS-CoV22 is weak enough that it doesn't survive washing hands with warm soap and water. So hot and humid air doesn't impact it? Poppycock!
The virus is at least as sensitive to DNA damage that happens inside of our skin cells from UV exposure that has more protecting material than the Coronavirus viral envelope. Moreover, a DHS study did reveal the virus is vulnerable to sunlight. Looks like it lasts about a minute and a half under direct sunlight.
Conclusion? Five minutes in the direct sun and the Coronavirus is toast. Don't bother with the lime.




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