Page 53 - CIJ Dec 2023 - Digital Edition

Technologically Speaking

institutional hygiene, such that industries to provide services
harmless microbes prevail over the in evaluating the antimicrobial
harmful ones. efficacy of products intended
for home/institutional care and
The Challenge personal hygiene applications.
of Antimicrobial It possesses a culture bank of
over 200 microbes, including
Resistance: bacteria, viruses, yeast, and mould,
Most responsible industries which the industry utilises to
assess product efficacy against
that manufacture antimicrobial a wide range of microbes. The
agents are becoming aware of the frequently used test reports
points mentioned above. Many are generated under the aegis of
actively searching for eco-friendly, ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation
less harsh actives that selectively are based on European and US
target and inactivate pathogens. standards. Some of these include
The same trend is observed in user EN 1040, EN 1276, ASTM 2783
industries, such as the hospitality (Suspension tests), EN 13697
and healthcare sectors. Scientists, (surface disinfection test), and BSI
physicians, and regulators are also PAS 2424 (residual antimicrobial
grappling with understanding and efficacy). Most of these reports are
controlling antimicrobial-resistant used to understand and promote
(AMR) bacteria and fungi, which products in both B2B and B2C
have largely developed due to the markets.
overuse of antimicrobial products
in the last few decades.
Collaboration with
Evaluating Product Industry for Sustainable
Efficacy Solutions
It is extremely important to BRC is actively engaged
evaluate the products to prove in projects with home and
their efficacy and ensure that personal care industries to study
they are fit for purpose. As more the microbiomes of various
understanding is being built around environments. This data is used
antimicrobial agents and their for: a) ensuring the elimination
impact on health and environment, of harmful microbes in a given
especially the microbiome environment, thus rendering
composition of different milieu, the product fit-for-purpose; b)
the pool of microbes to be differentially targeting good
tested is increasing in terms of and bad microbes, minimising
‘good’ and ‘bad’ microbes too. disruption in natural environments
To support these developments, (especially important for skin,
gut, scalp, and oral microbiomes);
the laboratories associated with
efficacy testing need to be geared and c) understanding the relative
up with a wide range of reference abundance of pathogens, thereby
and environmental strains. proving the product’s percentage
efficacy in killing microbes. This
approach is particularly vital for
Bhavan’s Research natural activities, whether used
Center: A Pioneer in alone or in formulations. Some of
Microbial Evaluation these methods primarily rely on
molecular studies, which provide
Bhavan’s Research Center a partial or complete overview of
(BRC), a specialised microbiology the microflora in an environment,
lab, is partnering with various including a rough quantification. CIJ

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