Doorknobs, handrails and shopping trolleys should be coated in COPPER because it kills Covid-19 in just four hours - compared to steel and plastic taking three days, scientist says

Doorknobs, handrails and shopping trolleys should be coated in copper to prevent the spread of coronavirus, according to a top British scientist.

Research has shown the deadly infection can survive and remain contagious on steel and plastic for three days.

But the coronavirus is killed off within four hours on copper because of the metal's antibacterial properties.

People can catch the illness by touching contaminated surfaces and then touching their face, allowing the virus to enter their mouth or nose.

William Keevil, a senior microbiologist at the University of Southampton, said the UK lagged behind other countries when it came to using copper in communal areas.

He suggested door handles, shopping trolleys, handrails on public transport, and even gym equipment should be coated in the metal.

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Doorknobs and handrails should be coated in copper to prevent the spread of coronavirus, according to British scientists

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Workers on New York City's underground system disinfect frequently used surfaces in Fulton Center, such as turnstiles, MetroCard vending machines and handrails

Coronavirus spreads when somebody who already has it coughs or sneezes onto their hand, then touches something or someone.

Anyone who touches something the patient has contaminated is at risk of catching the virus if they then touch their face.

The virus can enter the body through the eyes, nose and mouth, but not through the skin.

When the coronavirus lands on copper, the metal's ions - electrically charged atoms - attack the virus' lipid membrane, the structure that protects it.  

The copper then invades the cell and destroys the virus' DNA, killing it off completely.  

Professor Keevil told The Times that buses in Poland had already been fitted with copper-plated handrails, while airports in Chile and Brazil immigration kiosks were coated in the metal.

He said gyms in America – which are teeming with bacteria and other infectious germs - had even covered barbells and other equipment with copper.

'Door handles, push pipes on doors and stair rails in public buildings, as well as bus and train grab rails, should all have copper elements introduced in the UK,' he told the newspaper.

Professor Keevil - who has been studying the antimicrobial effects of copper for more than two decades -  said screens in fast-food restaurants and cash machines could also benefit from being fitted with the metal. 

A US study last November found that copper hospital beds in intensive care units harbored an average of 95 per cent fewer bacteria than conventional hospital beds.

The Medical University researchers, in South Carolina, wrote at the time: 'The findings indicate that antimicrobial copper beds can assist infection control practitioners in their quest to keep healthcare surfaces hygienic between regular cleanings, thereby reducing the potential risk of transmitting bacteria associated with healthcare associated infections.'  

Studies have also shown coronavirus can be detected up to 24 hours after on cardboard.

Similar results were obtained from tests they did on the virus that caused the 2003 SARS outbreak.

Health officials from around the world say stringent hand-washing protocols are crucial to stopping the virus's spread.