Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Dübendorf, Switzerland.
Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry, School of Architecture, Civil, and Environmental Engineering (ENAC), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland.
Appl Environ Microbiol. 2018 Oct 30;84(22). doi: 10.1128/AEM.01809-18. Print 2018 Nov 15.
Indirect exposure to waterborne viruses increases the risk of infection, especially among children with frequent hand-to-mouth contacts. Here, we quantified the transfer of one bacteriophage (MS2) and two enteric viruses (adenovirus and coxsackievirus) from liquid to skin. MS2, a commonly used enteric virus surrogate, was used to compare virus transfer rates in a volunteer trial to those obtained using human cadaver skin and synthetic skin. MS2 transfer to volunteer skin was similar to transfer to cadaver skin but significantly different from transfer to synthetic skin. The transfer of MS2, adenovirus, and coxsackievirus to cadaver skin was modeled using measurements for viruses attaching to the skin (adsorbed) and viruses in liquid residual on skin (unadsorbed). We find virus transfer per surface area is a function of the concentration of virus in the liquid and the film thickness of liquid retained on the skin and is estimable using a linear model. Notably, the amount of MS2 adsorbed on the skin was on average 5 times higher than the amount of adenovirus and 4 times higher than the amount of coxsackievirus. Quantification of pathogenic virus retention to skin would thus be overestimated using MS2 adsorption data. This study provides models of virus transfer useful for risk assessments of water-related activities, demonstrates significant differences in the transfer of pathogenic virus and MS2, and suggests cadaver skin as an alternative testing system for studying interactions between viruses and skin. Enteric viruses (viruses that infect the gastrointestinal tract) are responsible for most water-transmitted diseases. They are shed in high concentrations in the feces of infected individuals, persist for an extended period of time in water, and are highly infective. Exposure to contaminated water directly (through ingestion) or indirectly (for example, through hand-water contacts followed by hand-to-mouth contacts) increases the risk of virus transmission. The work described herein provides a quantitative model for estimating human-pathogenic virus retention on skin following contact with contaminated water. The work will be important in refining the contribution of indirect transmission of virus to risks associated with water-related activities.
间接接触水传播病毒会增加感染风险，尤其是对于经常有手-口接触的儿童。在这里，我们定量研究了一种噬菌体（MS2）和两种肠道病毒（腺病毒和柯萨奇病毒）从液体转移到皮肤的情况。MS2 是一种常用的肠道病毒替代物，用于比较志愿者试验中病毒转移率与用人尸体皮肤和合成皮肤获得的转移率。MS2 转移到志愿者皮肤与转移到尸体皮肤相似，但与转移到合成皮肤有显著差异。使用测量附着在皮肤（吸附）和皮肤表面残留液体（未吸附）中的病毒的方法，对 MS2、腺病毒和柯萨奇病毒转移到尸体皮肤进行建模。我们发现，病毒转移到单位面积与液体中病毒浓度和保留在皮肤表面的液膜厚度有关，可以使用线性模型进行估计。值得注意的是，MS2 吸附到皮肤的量平均是腺病毒的 5 倍，是柯萨奇病毒的 4 倍。因此，使用 MS2 吸附数据对致病性病毒在皮肤中的保留量进行定量可能会过高估计。本研究提供了用于评估与水有关的活动风险的病毒转移模型，证明了致病性病毒和 MS2 转移的显著差异，并建议用人尸体皮肤替代系统来研究病毒与皮肤之间的相互作用。肠道病毒（感染胃肠道的病毒）是大多数水传播疾病的病原体。感染个体的粪便中病毒浓度很高，在水中能长时间存在，并具有高度传染性。直接（通过摄入）或间接（例如，通过接触污染水后手-口接触）接触受污染的水会增加病毒传播的风险。本文所述的工作提供了一种定量模型，用于估计接触污染水后人类致病性病毒在皮肤上的保留量。这项工作对于细化与水相关活动相关风险中病毒间接传播的贡献非常重要。
