Ultraviolet radiation and heat can kill the SARS coronavirus effectively, a Chinese scientist said here Tuesday at the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), China, Japan and the Republic of Korea High-level Symposium on SARS.

Dong Xiaoping, vice director of the Institute of Virology at China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said that the lifespan of the coronavirus, the cause of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), reduced as the temperature rose.

The research group, led by Dong, revealed that the coronavirus is sensitive to high temperatures, surviving five days at 24 degrees Celsius, just 90 minutes at 56 degrees Celsius and 30 minutes at 75 degrees Celsius.

According to Dong, the ultraviolet rays emitted at 10 a.m. on a sunny May day in Beijing can kill the virus in three hours.

The two-day meeting, kicked off by Chinese Executive Vice Minister of Health Gao Qiang Tuesday morning, will discuss the important issues of SARS prevention and control.

(Xinhua News Agency June 4, 2003)