Wastewater-Based Epidemiological Surveillance for SARS-CoV-2

Abstract

Abstract Background: Similar to enteric or diarrheal coronaviruses (CoV), SARS-CoV-2 is also known for its gastrointestinal and fecal shedding even in asymptomatic Covid-19 individuals. Methods: An online literature search was conducted using Google scholar. PubMed, Europe PMC, Medline etc. to collect published articles on the countrywide detection of SARS-CoV-2 in various water and wastewater sources. Result: Ample of recent studies showed detection SARS-CoV-2 RNA in municipal and hospital wastewater as well as river and pond samples, suggesting its potential waterborne spread. Most of the reports used the molecular method (RT-qPCR) to detect the viral RNA, whereas some also quantified the RNA. Notably, the analyzed studies used different methods of water sampling and virus concentration, chose different gene-targets for RT-qPCR and presented RNA quantity as genome copy/mL or log10. Several of studies also described different physical and chemical methods of decontamination or inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 in treated water. Overall, while considerable amount of viral RNA was reported widely, couple of study tested the viability and infectivity of the retrieved particles in cultured cells. Conclusion: The available data on occurrences of SARS-CoV-2 in various water sources suggest an urgent need of wastewater-based epidemiological surveillance as an early-warning tool for COVID-19. This would help prevent unexpected contamination and safeguard drinking water. Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; Covid-19; Fecal shedding, Waterborne infection, Wastewater surveillance.