in the following paragraphs , preferred embodiments of the present will be described with reference to the attached drawings . the antibacterial and antiviral composition of the present invention comprises : a porous particulate carrier and thiosulfate salt and thiosulfate complex salt of silver , copper or zinc , carried on said carrier . the most preferred thiosulfate complex salt and thiosulfate salt are those of silver . a preferred carrier is silica gel having a mean particle diameter of 1 - 10 μm , and particularly is type b silica gel particle defined in japanese industrial standard jis z 0701 . particularly preferred silica gel is one that has a moisture absorption rate of 20 % or below under a low humidity environment ( relative humidity : 50 % or below , 25 ° c .) and a moisture absorption rate of 50 % under a high humidity environment ( relative humidity : 90 % or above , 25 ° c .). the silica gel does thus scarcely release moisture under the low humidity environment but release moisture in large quantity under the high humidity environment . the antibacterial and antiviral agents carried on such silica gel are hardly volatile and are stable to heat , and thus demonstrate their antibacterial and antiviral activities for a long period of time . further , silica gel is generally transparent and its refractive index is similar to that of any synthetic resin . therefore , when the silica gel carrying the antibacterial and antiviral agents is incorporated into the synthetic resin and the like , it does not change the color of the resin . a preferred antiviral composition of the present invention is prepared , for instance , in the following procedure . first , an aqueous solution of the silver thiosulfate and the silver thiosulfate complex salt is prepared by adding sodium sulfite and sodium thiosulfate to an aqueous solution of silver acetate . then , a porous particulate carrier such as silica gel is impregnated with the thus obtained aqueous solution and is then dried , to immobilize the contained agents in the carried state . although it is not apparent in what state are the above - mentioned silver salts being carried on the carrier , it is possible to identify the silver salts on the carrier by means of x - ray diffraction with a kα line of cu . fig1 shows the x - ray diffraction pattern , and there is recognized diffraction lines of ag 2 o ( marked by ), as well as power diffractions at 10 . 3 °, 11 . 2 °, 11 . 9 ° and 12 . 3 ° of the diffraction angle 2θ ( hereinafter , these value of 2θ are referred to as p 1 , p 2 , p 3 and p 4 , respectively ) which are not recognized in the jcpds ( joint committee on power diffraction standards ) card . in this pattern , marks o show the diffraction lines of sodium sulfide ( na 2 so 4 ). in the above - mentioned step of causing the silver salts to be carried on the carrier , if the drying temperature is raised , the x - ray power diffractions peculiar to the silver salts are made to disappear . fig1 shows the x - ray diffraction pattern of the antiviral composition obtained by the drying temperature at 100 ° c . or below . fig2 fig3 and fig4 show the x - ray diffraction patterns of the antiviral composition obtained under the drying conditions at 240 ° c . for 10 min ., at 240 ° c . for 30 min . and at 500 ° c . for 5 min ., respectively . when the drying temperature exceeds 200 ° c ., the peaks of the diffraction lines of ag 2 o and the power diffractions at p 1 - p 4 gradually become small . and the antiviral composition which has subjected to a heat treatment at 500 ° c . demonstrates no power diffraction other than those of na 2 so 4 , because the silver compounds have presumably been sublimed out of the composition . the composition that has an antibacterial and an antiviral activity as will be described later is those having small but distinct power diffractions at p 1 - p 4 in the x - ray diffraction pattern as shown in fig2 wherein all of the peaks of the power diffractions are approximately equal with one another , in addition to those having the x - ray diffraction pattern as shown in fig1 . the compositions having the x - ray diffractions patterns as shown in fig3 and fig4 have no antibacterial and antiviral activity . although sodium salts such as sodium sulfite , hydrogen sulfate and thiosulfate are used in the above - mentioned preparation of silver thiosulfate complex salt and silver thiosulfate salt , a potassium salt may also be used in the preparation and an x - ray diffraction pattern of the composition obtained with the potassium salt is shown in fig5 . in this diffraction pattern , there is recognized peculiar power diffractions at 8 . 7 °, 9 . 4 °, 9 . 8 ° and 11 . 2 ° of the diffraction angle 2θ which are not recognized in the jcpds card . as compared with that of fig1 the diffraction pattern of fig5 demonstrates that the diffraction angles representing the characteristic power diffractions are shifted to smaller angles . in this pattern , although diffraction lines of silver oxide ( ag 2 o ) are not clearly recognized but the diffraction lines representing potassium sulfate ( k 2 so 4 ) and another potassium compound ( k 2 s 4 o 6 ) are recognized . as previously described , the silver thiosulfate complex salt and silver thiosulfate complex salt for being carried on the porous particulate carrier can be obtained by adding at least one salt selected from the group consisting of a sulfite salt and a hydrogen sulfate salt as well as a thiosulfate salt to an aqueous solution of a water - soluble silver salt such as silver acetate and silver nitrate . it is preferable to use from 2 moles to 4 moles of the sulfite salt and / or hydrogen sulfate salt , and from 2 moles to 6 moles of thiosulfate salt , for one mole of the silver salt . in the thus obtained aqueous solution , silver thiosulfate complex ions represented by [ ag ( s 2 o 3 )] 3 - , [ ag 2 ( s 2 o 3 )] 2 - , and the like , are existing together , in addition to thiosulfate ions and silver ions . in view of the fact that the aqueous solution does not produce any remarkable white turbid even when it is brought in contact with tap water containing chlorine , it is presumed that most of the silver ions are in a form of the complex ions . anyway , in the above - mentioned coexisting state of the ions , the composition of the present invention demonstrates an antibacterial and antiviral activities . in view of slow releasing and long acting property of the composition , it is preferable to select the amount of these silver thiosulfate salt and silver thiosulfate complex salt to be carried on the porous particulate carrier as 1 - 10 parts by weight , and more preferably as 2 - 5 parts by weight , for 100 part of the carrier . silver acetate ( 0 . 232 g ) is dissolved in 30 ml of deionized water , and 0 . 627 g of potassium sulfite is added thereto and then stirred to dissolve therein . thereafter , 1 . 54 g of potassium thiosulfate ( k 2 s 2 o 3 ) is added to the mixture and stirred to dissolve . in this manner , an aqueous solution of silver thiosulfate salt and silver thiosulfate complex salt is prepared . as a carrier for carrying the thus obtained aqueous solution , this example employs a type b silica gel powder described in &# 34 ; jis z 0701 : silica gel for packaging &# 34 ;. this type b silica gel has a low moisture absorption rate under a low humidity environment , but it has a high moisture absorption rate under a high humidity environment , and therefor has a high total moisture absorption amount under the high humidity environment . in this example , one that has a particle diameter of from 2 to 30 μm ( average : 8 μm ) is employed . this type b silica gel powder is dried at 180 ° c . for 2 hours or longer , and further is dried at 60 ° c . for 24 hours . then , 100 parts by weight of the above - mentioned silica gel is mixed with the previously described aqueous solution containing its silver components in 2 part by weight , and the mixture is heated at 60 ° c . under a reduced pressure to remove its water component . thereafter , the dried particles are pulverized to have a given particle diameter . in this way , the silica gel which carries the silver thiosulfate salt and the silver thiosulfate complex salt is obtained . next , 100 parts by weight of the above - mentioned silica gel is dispersed in a solution prepared by dissolving 100 parts by weight of tetraethoxysilane in 100 parts by weight of ethanol , and then the tetraethoxysilane in the obtained dispersion is hydrolyzed by adding pure water to cause silicon dioxide film as the hydrolyzed product of the tetraethoxysilane to coat at least part of the surface of the above - mentioned silica gel . then , the coated silica gel is dried . after dissolving 200 mg of silver acetate in 30 ml of pure water kept at 50 °- 60 ° c ., the obtained solution is filtered to remove unsolved residue . to the flitrate , 1 g of potassium sulfite and 1 . 8 g of potassium thiosulfate are added in this order to be dissolved . to the obtained solution , a type b silica gel powder having a mean particle diameter of about 2 . 6 μm described in &# 34 ; jis z0701 : silica gel for packaging &# 34 ; is added to be mixed . drying of this mixture under a reduced atmosphere gives a silica gel carrying the silver thiosulfate salt and the silver thiosulfate complex salt . cupric acetate ( 0 . 272 g ) is dissolved in 30 ml of deionized water , and 1 . 0 g of potassium sulfite is added thereto to be dissolved . next , 0 . 66 g of potassium thiosulfate ( k 2 s 2 o 3 · 5h 2 o ) is added to the obtained mixture to be dissolved and stirred . in this manner , an aqueous solution containing the cupric thiosulfate salt and the cupric thiosulfate complex salt is prepared . next , in a similar manner to that of example 1 , the cuptic thiosulfate salt and the cupric thiosulfate complex salt are caused to be carried on silica gel and the part of the surface of the silica gel is coated with the silicon dioxide film . zinc acetate ( 0 . 286 g ) is dissolved in 30 ml of deionized water , and 1 . 0 g of potassium sulfite is added thereto to dissolve , next , 0 . 66 g of potassium thiosulfate ( k 2 s 2 o 3 · 5h 2 o ) is added to the obtained mixture to dissolve and stirred . in this manner , an aqueous solution of the zinc thiosulfate salt and the zinc thiosulfate complex salt is prepared . next , in a similar manner to that of example 1 , the zinc thiosulfate salt and the zinc thiosulfate complex salt are caused to be carried on silica gel and the part of the surface of the silica gel is coated with the silicon dioxide film . the composition obtained by the procedure of example 1 , namely , the silica gel particles which carry the silver thiosulfate salt and the silver thiosulfate complex salt and whose surfaces are coated with the silicon dioxide film , is classified to have a particle diameter of 2 μm or smaller . the classified particles are then mixed with a material for silicone rubber in 3 % by weight , and the obtained mixture is kneaded . the kneaded mixture is then molded into a given shape and thus caused to be bridged to obtain a thin film of silicone rubber . each 5 g of methyl acrylate and vinyl acetate are subjected to a process of suspension polymerization in 10 ml of benzene , and the polymerized product is dispersed in 10 ml of methanol . to this dispersion , 1 g of the silica gel carrying the silver thiosulfate salt and the silver thiosulfate complex salt which has been prepared in example 2 is added . the thus converted suspension is then saponified with an aqueous solution containing naoh in 40 % by weight and washed with acetone . the washed suspension is dried to remove its water component to obtain powder of water absorbing property . an ointment is prepared by mixing the silica gel carrying the silver thiosulfate salt and the silver thiosulfate complex salt obtained in example 2 in 3 % by weight with an ointment base of vaseline . l - adamantamlne hydrochloride ( 10 mmol ) is dissolved in the aqueous solution containing the silver thiosulfate salt and the silver thiosulfate complex salt which has been prepared by the process described in example 1 . the thus obtained aqueous solution is adsorbed on the silica gel particles employed in example 2 , and dried under reduced pressure . ten ( 10 ) grams of silica gel carrying the silver thiosulfate salt and the silver thiosulfate complex salt prepared in example 2 is dispersed in 100 ml of an aqueous ethanol solution containing ethanol in 50 % by weight to obtain a bactericidal disinfection solution . ten ( 10 ) grams of silica gel carrying the silver thiosulfate complex salt and the silver thiosulfate salt prepared in example 4 is dispersed in 100 ml of an aqueous ethanol solution containing ethanol in 50 % by weight to obtain a bactericidal disinfecting solution . another bactericidal disinfecting solution is prepared by standing the solution obtained in example 9 at room temperature for a week . another coating film of silicone rubber is prepared in a similar manner to those described in example 5 , but excluding the incorporation of the silica gel . another bactericidal disinfecting solution is prepared by simply mixing water and ethanol by 50 % by weight . another bactericidal disinfecting solution is prepared by standing the solution obtained in comparative example 2 at room temperature for a week . in the following paragraph , the evaluation process performed on the antibacterial and antiviral activities of the samples prepared in accordance with the above - mentioned examples and comparative examples will be described . each one gram of the products obtained by examples 1 - 8 and comparative example 1 and 3 ml of phosphate buffer solution are combined and stirred for 30 minutes , and salts contained in the product is extracted to give the samples for the evaluation . the disinfecting solutions obtained by examples 9 - 11 and comparative examples 2 - 3 are used as the samples as they are . polio ( sabin alive vaccine ), measles ( nagahata strain ), human immunodeficiency ( aids ) ( jmh - 1 strain ), herpes simplex ( g strain ), and influenza a virus ( okuda strain ). each one ml of the virus - containing solutions of tcid ( tissue culture infective dose ) 50 (/ ml ): 6 . 5 - 8 . 5 is mixed with each one ml of the above - mentioned samples and stand still for 30 minutes . then , the vero cells derived from kidney of the african green monkey ( guenon ), the mt - 4 cells derived from the adult thymocyte leukemia patient and the mdck cells derived from kidney of canien ( each : 10 6 cells / ml ) are infected with each of the thus stood mixtures , and the infection activities are evaluated by state of the survival of the infected cells after a week , respectively . the results of this evaluation are summarized in table 1 . table 1______________________________________ ( antiviral activity ) tcid . sub . 50 (/ ml ) [- log ] samples derived virusfrom a b c d e______________________________________example 1 9 . 0 2 . 0 2 . 5 1 . 5 2 . 5example 2 9 . 0 2 . 0 2 . 5 2 . 5 2 . 5example 3 9 . 0 3 . 5 4 . 0 3 . 0 3 . 5example 4 9 . 0 3 . 5 4 . 0 3 . 0 3 . 5example 5 9 . 0 2 . 5 3 . 0 3 . 0 3 . 5example 6 9 . 0 2 . 5 3 . 0 3 . 0 3 . 5example 7 9 . 0 2 . 5 3 . 0 3 . 0 3 . 5example 8 9 . 0 1 . 0 1 . 0 1 . 0 1 . 0example 9 2 . 5 0 0 0 0example 10 2 . 5 0 0 0 0example 11 9 . 0 2 . 0 2 . 5 2 . 5 2 . 5comparative e . 1 8 . 5 7 . 0 6 . 5 8 . 5 6 . 5comparative e . 2 4 . 0 4 . 0 3 . 5 4 . 0 3 . 5comparative e . 3 8 . 0 7 . 0 6 . 5 6 . 5 6 . 5______________________________________ a : polio ( sabin alive vaccine ), b : measles ( nagahata strain ), c : human immunodeficiency ( jmh1 ), d : helpes simplex ( g strain ), e : influenza a virus ( okuda strain ). each one ml of solutions containing the abovementioned bacteria ( 10 4 - 10 6 cfu ( colony forming units )/ ml ) is mixed with each one ml of the samples and stand still for 30 minutes . the stood mixtures are spread over normal agar media ( available from nissui pharmaceutical k . k ., japan ) with a dilution , respectively . the agar media are incubated for 18 hours , and numbers of the cells grown on the agar media after the incubation are counted for the evaluation . the results of this evaluation are summarized in table 2 . table 2______________________________________ ( antibacterial activity ) samples derived cfu / mlfrom e . coli s . aureus mrsa______________________________________example 1 0 0 0example 2 0 0 0example 3 0 0 0example 4 0 0 0example 5 0 0 0example 6 0 0 0example 7 0 0 0example 8 0 0 0example 9 0 0 0example 10 0 0 0example 11 0 0 0comparative e . 1 1 . 5 × 10 . sup . 5 1 . 0 × 10 . sup . 4 1 . 0 × 10 . sup . 4comparative e . 2 10 10 10comparative e . 3 1 . 0 × 10 . sup . 4 1 . 0 × 10 . sup . 4 1 . 2 × 10 . sup . 3______________________________________ although the present invention has been described in terms of the presently preferred embodiments , it is to be understood that such disclosures are not to be interpreted as limiting . various alterations and modification will no doubt become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains , after having read the above disclosure . accordingly , it is intended that the appended claims be interpreted as covering all alterations and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention .
an antiviral composition comprising : a thiosulfate salt and at least one of thiosulfate complex salt of a metal and a porous particulate carrier ; said metal being at least one selected from the group consisting of silver , copper and zinc ; said salts being carried on said porous particulate carrier . it is applicable to a wide range of living environment such as medical instruments and appliances , hygienic implements as well as kitchen utensils , and also demonstrates an antibacterial activity in addition to the antiviral activity . the composition releases its salts slowly to the environment and the antiviral and antibacterial activities of said composition lasts for a long period of time . a method for preparing said composition as well as an antiviral disinfection method and a virucidal disinfection fluid using said composition are also disclosed .