KTIV NewsChannel 4 Sioux City IA: News, Weather and SportsSiouxland researchers discover germ fighting molecule to be put into products

Siouxland researchers discover germ fighting molecule to be put into products

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VERMILLION, S.D. (KTIV) - In this age of H1N1, we're all trying to avoid germs as much as possible, but now some researchers at the University of South Dakota have come up with a product that helps other products kill germs.

Thursday afternoon, several researchers from a variety of fields were honored for their discovery at the University of South Dakota.  Among those, Doctor Yuyu Sun, the lead researcher on a new germ-killing 'molecule' that will go into products like household paint, desktop products, even clothes.

"It's just like the Clorox Bleach you're using," said USD Researcher Dr. Yuyu Sun.

Instead of using it as a cleaner, this new discovery is added to create the product itself, like a wrestling mat.

Dr. Yuyu Sun is helping to combat germs using a new type of N-halamine. N-Halamines are widely used today, but researchers at USD found they only protect against a narrow range of organisms. The new type, called CI-TMPM, will protect against, viruses, bacteria, even fungi and mold. Sun says, the new molecule can be added to products during manufacturing.

"So if germs come in contact with it, it kills them," said Sun.

Sun says this discovery will be used in the vests our military men and women use to prevent the growth of bacteria. It can even be used in their socks to prevent athlete's foot.

"And the patent is licensed to a company called AntiBacterial Group," said Sun.

Sun says they'll decide what products to launch first, but if everything goes well it should be tested in the market place, in the next year or so.

When added to paint, initial tests show it killed E-coli within five minutes of contact, and killed staph bacteria within ten minutes of contact.