Virucidal efficacy of a disinfectant solution composed of citric acid, benzalkonium chloride and phosphoric acid against porcine epidemic diarrhea virus

Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) causes porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) and a considerable economic loss in the swine industry. In this study, the virucidal efficacy of a disinfectant composed of citric acid, benzalkonium chloride and phosphoric acid against PEDV was investigated. Virucidal efficacy was assessed as the infectivity of PEDV toward Vero cells after exposure of the virus to the disinfectant. PEDV was exposed to the disinfectant in the presence of either hard water (HW) or an organic matter suspension (OM). In HW condition, PEDV was inactivated by 600-fold dilutions of the disinfectant. In the presence of OM, the disinfectant showed virucidal activity after a 200-fold dilution. As the disinfectant possesses virucidal activity against PEDV, it should be an effective reagent to use to limit the spread of animal viral diseases.