Nanobiotechnology for health-care
In vitro anticoronavirus activities of water-soluble pristine C60 fullerene

Z. Klestova1, A. Voronina1, O. Vatlitsova1, A. Yushchenko1, H. Kuzmich1, Y.Dremuh, O. Sychova1, S. Prylutska2, V. Cherepanov3, Yu. Prylutskyy2, 
U. Ritter4

1State Scientific-Control Institute of Biotechnology and Strains of Microorganisms, Donetska Str., 30, 03151 Kyiv, Ukraine.
E-mail: zinaklestova@gmail.com 
2Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Volodymyrska Str., 64, 01601 Kyiv, Ukraine.
3Institute of Physics of NASU, Nauki Av., 46, 03028 Kyiv, Ukraine.
4Technical University of Ilmenau, Institute of Chemistry and Biotechnology, Weimarer Str., 25, 98693 Ilmenau, Germany.

Advanced nanobiotechnologies are able to solve many of the clinical health problems caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, they offer new therapeutic approaches using biocompatible nanostructures with "specific" antiviral activity. For this reason, the nanosized carbon molecule - C60 fullerene is quite favourable. Because of hydrophobicity, it easily penetrates the biological membrane, and shows non-toxic properties in vitro systems at low concentrations and doses [1]. Finally, by ultrasonic treatment C60 fullerene forms a stable colloidal aqueous solution [2] that expands its biomedical application.
For the first time, complex in vitro studies of water-soluble C60 fullerenes were performed, as potential prophylactic and therapeutic agents against the most common coronaviruses that may danger for human and animal life. Particularly, as an apathogenic human research model, Bovine coronavirus (BCoV), which like SARS-CoV-2 virus, belongs to the group of β-Coronaviruses, was chosen to assess the anticoronavirus activity of C60 fullerenes.

This research was supported by the National Research Foundation of Ukraine (project 2020.01/0044).

1.	S.V. Prylutska, A.G. Grebinyk, O.V. Lynchak, I.V. Byelinska, V.V. Cherepanov, et al. In vitro and in vivo toxicity of pristine C60 fullerene aqueous colloid solution // Fullerenes, Nanotubes, Carbon Nanostruct.-2019.-27, N 9.-P. 715-728. 
2.	U. Ritter, Yu.I. Prylutskyy, M.P. Evstigneev, N.A. Davidenko, V.V. Cherepanov, et al. Structural features of highly stable reproducible C60 fullerene aqueous colloid solution probed by various techniques // Fullerenes, Nanotubes, Carbon Nanostruct.-2015.-23, N 6.-P. 530-534.