The COVID-19 pandemic has shown how vulnerable society is to biological hazards. Dr Sholeem Griffin and Dr Jefferson de Oliveira Mallia will present their work on a novel method of disinfectant synthesis that can help tackle pandemics. The Malta Café Scientifique talk will be on 7 December 2022 at 19:00, Studio B (Music Room) at Spazju Kreattiv in Valletta.
It seems like the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic is over, however, it has shown us that the world was not prepared for such a pandemic. Moreover, we don’t know what the next pandemic will look like. It will not necessarily be a virus causing such an event, and whatever pathogen comes next could be even more deadly. Luckily, some research on how to tackle COVID-19 also applies to many other pathogens. In their work, Griffin and de Oliveira Mallia investigate how to produce a novel class of broad-spectrum disinfectants. These special kinds of disinfectants called plasma-activated solutions can be used against several bacteria and fungal strains as well as viruses. Plasma-activated solutions are produced by passing an electrical discharge through water, which gives it biocidal properties. In the Faculty of Health Sciences and the Metamaterials Unit at the University of Malta, Griffin and de Oliveira Mallia along with the rest of the team show how effective these disinfectants are, and how the human body reacts to them.
Join the entertaining evening to learn about the future of disinfectants during pandemics, COVID-19, and plasma-activated solutions as biocides. To stay up to date about events and speakers, check out the Malta Café Scientifique Facebook page and webpage.
Malta Café Scientifique thanks the STEAM project, Spazju Kreattiv for hosting this event, the University of Malta, and Malta Chamber of Scientists (of which the café forms part).
Project SANITAS is funded by the Malta Council for Science and Technology and Malta Enterprise through the COVID-19 R&D Fund.