Viral retention evaluation for masks

An in vitro test to quantify the viral retention property for any type of mask.

Manuel Jaime Rodríguez

During the pandemia, the use of masks has been politically controversial because of the lack of scientific data to sustain its use.

Also innovation has grown in orden to design different types of masks and with different types of material to be more environmentally friendly.

The in vitro test proposed is able to quantitatively evaluate the efficiency of different types of mask, materials and use conditions in order to have scientific data to sustain their correct use.

General masks costumers that will have the certainty that they are using masks that are efficient to protect them from virus.

Mask producers that will have a quantitative quality control for their masks and to evaluate new designs and materials for this devices.

Sanitary authorities that will have precise scientific data to promote the correct use of masks and also mention its limitations.

Environment that will be less affected with the support of new type of eco-friendly materials masks that can be tested efficiently.

The certainty of the people that masks are useful to protect them from virus and prevent the spill of the virus.

Limit the spill of virus in this pandemia or future pandemia with scienfically based data of mask use.

The support of sanitary authorities to scientifically based politics and recomendations of masks.

The scientific support for mask producers to innovate in materials and designs that are more eco-friendly but also still functional.

The propagation of eco-friendly material mask will benefit future generations to have a world with less surgical cloth.

In the first year we can analyze a lot of different types of masks and have a lot of scienfic information to support the use of different types of masks, different types of materials, the limit of time for use, the times that we can reuse the mask, etc.

In the third year we will have a lot of scientific data to substitute the surgical cloath with other eco-friendly materials that do not lose its efficiency and protection.

Also in three year we can make a mask use culture supported with scienfic data generated by this test.

The success of this project will be measured with the next Key Performance Indicators:

* The number of different masks, materials and conditions of use evaluated.

* The number of sanitary agencies that use the results of this test to support sanitary policies for the use of masks.

The barriers of this project are two:

The budget because we want to perform this study to a wide variety of masks and use conditions but we do not have the money to perform them.

The accesibility for this results to reach to regulatory authorities of different countries.

Instituto Tecnológico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM)

Because in Mexico science based budget for research has been diminished a lot in consequence of the pandemy.

The price to perform the assay is unaffordable for the majority of the Mexican companies.

We want to perform a wide analysis in order to support the use of masks because in Mexico, our governors do not promote the use of them with the excuse of missing information data.

The mask is a political symbol that has been affected by politicians because of the lack of "in your face" scientific data.

We want that this technology is available in the world for the benefit of the current and next generations

COFEPRIS Mexico

EMA (UE)

FDA (US)

UK Department of Health

University of Cambridge

Imperial College 

Google

Microsoft