The company Proneem in Marseille has point a mask impregnated with an anti-Covid active. – Robert Poulain
In Marseille, the start-up Proneem claims to have developed in a few months a “textile treatment with high antiviral functionality whose effectiveness has been proven on SARS-Cov-2”, the virus responsible for Covid – 15.
The company has adapted to the situation thanks to its expertise: for fifteen years, it has been treating fabrics to remove mites and other insects.
It is possible to disinfect a surface with a product that eliminates the viruses present. But a few postilions later, everything has to be redone. “With our Viralstop treatment, the persistence is seven days”, assures Nathalie Hagege, founder and president from Proneem, company Marseille created in 310. Could this new miracle product be the result of a rapid adaptation to integrate the market linked to the health crisis? In part, but not only.
“That makes years that we have been working on biocides, and our expertise relates to the functionalization of tissues ”, as the head of Proneem likes to point out. In other words: this company has been treating pieces of fabric for years to kill or repel mites, bedbugs, mosquitoes and … viruses. Result: the start-up claims to have developed in a few months a “textile treatment with high antiviral functionality whose effectiveness has been proven on SARS-Cov-2”, the virus responsible for Covid – 19.
Textiles which block and destroy the virus
This made it possible to treat masks with Viral stop, masks which not only prevent the passage of the virus, but destroy it. “They keep the same efficiency even after twenty washes,” says Nathalie Hagege. The process can be applied to gloves or any other type of clothing, as well as for industrial textiles. Finally, it is also planned to market a spray to treat potentially contaminated surfaces. How does this product work? Ingredients such as zinc pyrithione (ZnP) and zinc oxide (ZnO) are believed to prevent the replication of many viruses, including coronaviruses. “It attaches to the membrane and destroys it. After 30 minutes, 99, 9% of viral elements are destroyed ”, according to the director, who specifies that these products should be marketed before the end of the year. But she has already “signed an agreement with the National Olympic Committee to provide masks that will protect athletes.” And she hopes to quickly obtain “a response from the government, which (them) requested.” “