銅系複合酸化物の開発と抗ウイルス活性機構の解明~実験と計算材料科学を融合させた新たな研究スキームを提示~

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2025-12-02 東京科学大学

東京科学大学・中島章教授らの研究グループは、KISTECとの共同研究により、銅系酸化物 CuO を La₂O₃ または Y₂O₃ と複合化した新規複合酸化物 La₂CuO₄、Y₂Cu₂O₅ を開発し、エンベロープ型/ノンエンベロープ型の双方のウイルスに対して非常に高い抗ウイルス活性を示すことを発見した。特にノンエンベロープ型ウイルスでは、4時間で 99.999%以上の不活化 を達成。CuOが本来低活性である問題を克服し、長期安定性試験でも La₂CuO₄は1.5年後も高い活性を維持した。研究では、材料表面モデル構築ソフトを開発し、第一原理計算により静電相互作用によるウイルス吸着やタンパク質不活化機構、さらに世界初となる“酸化物表面におけるジスルフィド結合切断”を評価し、高活性の理論的根拠を明らかにした。実験と計算材料科学を融合した本成果は、耐久性に優れた抗ウイルス材料設計の新指針を示し、感染症対策技術の高度化に寄与する。

銅系複合酸化物の開発と抗ウイルス活性機構の解明~実験と計算材料科学を融合させた新たな研究スキームを提示~図1. 第一原理計算により評価を行ったジスルフィド結合の切断のイメージ

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第一原理に基づくメカニズムの洞察によるLa 2 CuO 4およびY 2 Cu 2 O 5の調製と抗ウイルス活性 Preparation and Antiviral Activity of La2CuO4 and Y2Cu2O5 with Mechanistic Insights from First-Principles

Ryuju Kiribayashi,Kayano Sunada,Toshihiro Isobe,Keiichi Kobayashi,Takeshi Nagai,Hitoshi Ishiguro,Yasuhide Mochizuki,and Akira Nakajima

ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces  Published: October 21, 2025

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.5c17978

Abstract

Copper oxide is a representative inorganic antiviral material. However, the highly active Cu2O phase transforms gradually into CuO, which results in reduced antiviral activity. For this study, we aimed at developing a material with high antiviral activity based on CuO. To this end, La2CuO4 and Y2Cu2O5 were synthesized respectively by combining CuO with La2O3 and Y2O3. Their antiviral properties were investigated. For comparison, Al2CuO4 and the simple oxides of each constituent element were also prepared and evaluated. The ternary oxides synthesized using citric acid combustion method and the solid-state reaction method were confirmed to be single-phase. Surface analysis revealed the presence of Cu+ on La2CuO4 and Y2Cu2O5. The amount of ion release from these materials was found to be low. Antiviral activity tests were conducted against the nonenveloped bacteriophage Qβ and the enveloped bacteriophage Φ6, following ISO-standard evaluation methods. La2CuO4 and Y2Cu2O5 exhibited stronger antiviral activity against Qβ than either CuO, La2O3, or Y2O3. Detailed analyses suggested that the enhanced activity was attributable to strengthened electrostatic interactions and an improved ability to inactivate proteins. In contrast, La2O3 and Y2O3 showed relatively high antiviral activity against Φ6, primarily because of their strong affinity for phosphate groups. First-principles calculations indicate that (i) the surfaces of these ternary oxides containing Cu2+ are cation-rich and (ii) the surface formal charge of copper is predominantly monovalent. These findings suggest that the unique surface states because of their crystal structures play a crucially important role in the antiviral performance of La2CuO4 and Y2Cu2O5. The antiviral activity of La2CuO4 against Qβ exhibited high long-term stability, surpassing the reported performance of Cu2O. The present study is expected to provide promising new materials with improved antiviral activities compared to conventional CuO.

生物工学一般
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