RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Cetylpyridinium chloride-containing mouthwashes reduce in vitro SARS-CoV-2 infectivity JF bioRxiv FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory SP 2020.12.21.423779 DO 10.1101/2020.12.21.423779 A1 Jordana Muñoz-Basagoiti A1 Daniel Perez-Zsolt A1 Rubén León A1 Vanessa Blanc A1 Joan Gispert A1 Bonaventura Clotet A1 Nuria Izquierdo-Useros YR 2020 UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/12/21/2020.12.21.423779.abstract AB Oral mouthwashes decrease the infectivity of several respiratory viruses including SARS-CoV-2. However, the precise agents with antiviral activity present in these oral rinses and their exact mechanism of action remain unknown. Here we show that Cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC), a quaternary ammonium compound present in many oral mouthwashes, reduces SARS-CoV-2 infectivity by inhibiting viral fusion with target cells. We also found that CPC and CPC-containing mouth rinses decreased a thousand times the infectivity of SARS-CoV-2 in vitro, while the corresponding vehicles had no effect. CPC-containing mouth rinses could represent a cost-effective measure to reduce SARS-CoV-2 infectivity in saliva, aiding to reduce viral transmission from infected individuals.Competing Interest StatementThis research was funded by Dentaid SL. R.L, VB. and J.G are researchers working for Dentaid Research Center. The authors declare that no other competing interest exist.