Disinfectants benzalkonium chloride

Disinfectants. Several disinfecting agents can be used in hatcheries and two are of particular interest. Because they are not considered dmg or food additive uses by FDA, povidone—iodine compounds can be used to disinfect the surface of eggs (9). Benzalkonium chloride [68424-85-1] and benzethonium chloride (quaternary ammonium compounds), are allowed at 2 mg/L by FDA to disinfect water containing fish. These compounds are also known to have therapeutic properties, especially against external bacteria (9). 

Other disinfectants include quartemary ammonium compounds (QACs) such as benzalkonium chloride (BACl) and didecyldimethylammonium chloride (DDMAC). Disinfectants have been shown to denitrifying bacteria at concentrations as low as 1-2 ng L (Kiimmerer, 2004b). QACs are specifically not used for disinfecting clothing, but their use is central in other purposes. Triclocarban and triclosan have an aromatic structure that is rich in chlorides, which contribute to their persistence in the environment. QACs are also quite persistent in the environment (Al-Ahmad et al., 2000). Other disinfectants include chloramines and 1,3-dichlorosucyanuric acid as well as PVP-iodide-based disinfectants. 

Use of contact lenses increases the risk of corneal infection. The most common pathogens that cause eye infection are Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Serratia marcescens, Staphylococcus aureus, S. epidermidis, and S. pneumoniae. Fungi rarely cause eye infections. Commonly used disinfectants are benzalkonium chloride and chlorhexidine. 

Surfactants are used primarily as inert ingredients of pesticides, especially in agricultural applications. These surfactants usually have TSCA as well as inert pesticidal regulatory status in the US. Some surfactants are active components in pesticides. For example, the cationic surfactants benzalkonium chloride and didecyl ammonium chloride and their various derivatives are registered as active ingredients in disinfectant products with many household and industrial applications. 

Microbial degradation of biocides has been described by Hugo [72] who points out that soil organisms are able to break down substances such as phenols added as fumigants. He also reviewed the utilization by bacteria of aromatic compounds (including the preservatives cresol, phenol, benzoic acid and esters of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid). Several types of preservatives and disinfectants, such as the QACs (e.g. cetrimide, cetylpyridinium chloride, benzalkonium chloride), chlorhexidine and phenylethanol can also be inactivated. Significantly, this only occurs at concentrations well below inhibitory or in-use concentrations [33] and thus cannot be responsible for insusceptibility. A further comment about chlorhexidine is given below. 

Quaternary ammonium compounds are surface-active agents. Some of them precipitate or denature proteins and destroy microorganisms. The most important disinfectants in this group are cationic surface-active agents, such as benzalkonium chloride, benzethonium chloride and methylbenzethonium chloride, and cetylpyridinium chloride the problems that they cause are similar. 

The bactericidal activity of benzalkonium chloride is hm-ited to the Gram-positive and some of the Gram-negative bacteria, but Pseudomonas species are especially resistant and can cause severe infection. Too often it is not realized that the disinfectant can be contaminated with active multiplying resistant organisms. 

Benzalkonium chloride at concentrations greater than 0.005 mg/ml causes histamine release from mast cells in vitro. At a concentration of 0.03 mg/ml an excess of 90% of the histamine content is released (5). This is in the range of the minimum concentration of benzalkonium chloride recommended as a disinfectant (0.025 mg/ml). Inhalation of benzalkonium chloride nebulizer solution causes concentration-related falls in FEVi in patients with asthma (6). Benzalkonium chloride 0.3 mg also causes a temporary increase in airway reactivity to histamine. This amount of benzalkonium chloride is similar to that in a 2.5 mg dose from a multidose vial of salbutamol (7). Ipratropium containing benzalkonium chloride 0.25 mg/ml causes bronchoconstriction in a proportion of patients with asthma. BronchodUatation is seen when 2 ml (0.5 mg) of preservative-free ipratropium bromide solution is inhaled (8). Benzalkonium chloride 0.1 mg/ml does not alter the bronchodUator effect of salbutamol. The difference between salbutamol and ipratropium may be the lower concentration of benzalkonium chloride in the salbutamol solution (0.1 versus 0.25 mg/ml) and the greater potency and more rapid onset of the bronchodilator response to salbutamol (9). Individual case reports suggest that... 

Benzalkonium chloride is a mixture of alkylbenzyldimethylammonium chlorides of the general formula [CgH5CH2N(CH3)2R]Cl, where R represents a mixture of the alkyls from C8Hi7 to C18H37. In dilute solution (1 in 1000 to 1 in 2000) it may be used for the preoperative disinfection of skin and mucous membranes, for application to burns and wounds, and for cleaning polythene and nylon tubing and catheters. Benzalkonium chloride is also used as a preservative for eye-drops and as a permitted vehicle for the preparation of certain eye-drops. 

Suitable blood-related specimens for the determination of alcohols are serum, plasma, or whole blood. The venipuncture site should be cleansed with an alcohol-free disinfectant, such as aqueous benzalkonium chloride (Zephiran). 

Quaternary ammonium salts that have a very long carbon chain, sometimes caUed "quats," are used as disinfectants and antiseptics because they have detergent activity. Two popular quats are benzalkonium chloride (Zephiran) and cetylp)n-i-dinimn chloride, found in the mouthwash Cepacol. 

Gardiquat. [Albright Wilson Am. Albright Wilson UK] Benzalkonium chloride bactericide, germicide for disinfectants and antisepdcs for hospitals, food processing, oil drilling muds. 

SanisoL [KaoCorp. SA] Benzalkonium chloride disinfectant sanitizer for pharmaceuticals, industrial and cooling water treatment... 

Example 2.1 An experimenter challenges a benzalkonium chloride disinfectant with 1 X 10 Staphylococcus aureus bacteria in a series of timed exposures. As noted earlier, exponential microbial colony counts are customarily linearized via a logio scale transformation, which has been performed in this example. The resultant data are presented in Table 2.1. 

The chemical modification of CS biopolymers via reductive amination, to yield alkylated CS derivatives, and further quaternisation result in very efficient antibacterial materials the degree of activity is correlated to the length of the alkyl chain and bacterial strain. The most active CS derivatives are more selective at killing bacteria than the quaternary ammonium disinfectants, cetylpyridinium chloride and benzalkonium chloride, and AMP. Vanillin can be used as a crosslinker of CS nsing this approach, functionalised antimicrobial polymers based on CS, vanillin. Tween 60 and so on may be easily prepared. Imino-CS biopolymer films, prepared by the acid condensation of the amino groups of CS with various aldehydes, can be used as functional biodynamic materials. 

Some quaternary ammonium salts are important because they have disinfectant properties. For example, benzalkonium chloride (Zephiran ) is a well-known antiseptic compound that kills many pathogenic (disease-causing) bacteria and fungi on contact ... 

Quaternary ammonium compounds are widely used antiseptics and disinfectants with a low sensitizing potential. Benzalkonium chloride is used as a skin disinfectant, for disinfection of instruments, and in treatment of burns, ulcers, etc. Cosmetics, deodorants, mouthwashes, and ophthalmic preparations, including contact lens solutions, may contain benzalkonium chloride. 

Cationic surface active agents such as benzalkonium chloride and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (Figure 1) have use as antibacterial agents, i.e., disinfectants and antiseptics, and have the advantage that the antimicrobial action is combined with a cleaning action associated with their detergent activity. 

Homologs of alkylbenzyldimethylammonium, particularly benzalkonium chloride (BAK), used as disinfectants and bactericides can be determined at microgram per milliliter levels in effluents from hospitals by LC using postcolumn derivatization and fluorescence detection. Also, BAK was determined after sample treatment using SPE with LC-MS and LC-MS/MS detection in waste and river waters. 

Benzalkonium chloride (Benirol, BTC, Capitol, Cequartyl, Drapolene, Drapolex, Enuclen, Germinol, Germitol, Osvan, Paralkan, Roccal, Rodalon, Zephiran, Zephirol, no CAS no.) is a composition of alkyl-dimethylbenzylammonium chlorides, in which the hydrophobic alkyl residues are paraffinic chains with 8-18 carbon atoms. The bactericidal activity is limited to gram-positive and some gram-negative bacteria. In particular. Pseudomonas species are resistant and have caused many problems with contaminated disinfectants (Kaslow 1976). 

Benzalkonium chloride is used mainly as a disinfectant for pre-operative skin cleansing and, surgical instruments but has sometimes been used in the treatment of ulcers, wounds and infected dermatoses. It is also present as a preservative in many cosmetic products and ophthalmic preparations. Irritation is strongly related to the concentration of the solution. 

Disinfectants can cause irritant contact dermatitis. A benzalkonium chloride-containing disinfectant applied on the hearing protectors of a soldier triggered the development of irritant contact dermatitis in the left ear (Gall 1979). 

Quaternary ammonium ions, such as benzalkonium chloride have disinfectant properties and are often a... 

Nurses, who have many opportunities to come into contact with disinfecting agents such as benzalkonium chloride, are frequently affected [60-62]. There are two reports of an allergy developing after cast material containing benzalkonium chloride was used to set broken bones [63, 64]. Ophthalmologic and patients with external ear infections are also sometimes affected, as benzalkonium chloride is used in ophthalmologic and otic preparations [57, 65, 66]. 

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