Σ–MM™ Inactivation Media

Inactivates SARS-CoV-2 in 60 seconds

Designed and manufactured in the UK, Σ–MM™ solution rapidly kills all microorganisms, including bacteria, mycobacteria and viruses, rendering specimens safe for transport, whilst preserving and stabilising RNA/DNA for accurate molecular analysis across diagnostic platforms.

Key Benefits

• Inactivates SARS-CoV-2 in 60 seconds
• Rapidly kills all microorganisms, including bacteria, mycobacteria and viruses
• Suitable for highly infectious clinical specimens
• DNases and RNases inactivated
• DNA and RNA preserved for molecular testing
• Can be used with any swab
• Powerful reagents kill deadly pathogens quickly
• Safe and stable for transport at ambient temperature

The Σ–MM™ device is a highly effective single step collection. The medium disturbs and lyses lipid membranes, destroys proteins including DNase and RNase, leaving stable intact DNA or RNA. Specimens collected into Σ–MM™ can be transported at ambient temperatures, no freezing or refrigeration is required. Specimens can be collected using any microbiology swabs, including MWE Transwab® and all MWE Dryswab™ products.

Σ–MM™ has been on the market for a number of years and has consistently been shown to effectively eliminate infectious microorganisms from specimens. During the pandemic, Σ–MM™ has demonstrated compatibility on numerous PCR platforms, where samples were rendered safe for handling & viral RNA was preserved, resulting in accurate diagnostic reporting.

A study was designed in cooperation with the Medical Research Council & University of Glasgow’s Centre for Virus Research to measure the inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 achieved in specimens collected using Σ–MM™. Σ–MM™ Molecular Medium was tested for the ability to inactivate SARS- CoV-2-Gla-1 isolate.

BS EN 14476 requires that there should be a titre reduction of more than 4 log10 for virucidal suspension tests. Σ–MM™ consistently exceeded this requirement for both the time points and concentrations used in the study. In fact, in 1 minute of inoculation there was no detectable virus at all in 6 out of 6 samples tested. Given that the test concentrations were higher than would be the case for clinical specimens, the study demonstrates that Σ–MM™ can be used as a safe transport system for SARS-CoV-2 specimens, offering rapid inactivation. The results are consistent with other studies using different inactivation reagents and methods.