National Food Virology Reference Centre, Bureau of Microbial Hazards, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
National Food Virology Reference Centre, Bureau of Microbial Hazards, Health Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Food Microbiol. 2021 Sep;98:103780. doi: 10.1016/j.fm.2021.103780. Epub 2021 Feb 26.
Human coronaviruses (HCoVs) are mainly associated with respiratory infections. However, there is evidence that highly pathogenic HCoVs, including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV), infect the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and are shed in the fecal matter of the infected individuals. These observations have raised questions regarding the possibility of fecal-oral route as well as foodborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and MERS-CoV. Studies regarding the survival of HCoVs on inanimate surfaces demonstrate that these viruses can remain infectious for hours to days, however, there is limited data regarding the viral survival on fresh produce, which is usually consumed raw or with minimal heat processing. To address this knowledge gap, we examined the persistence of HCoV-229E, as a surrogate for highly pathogenic HCoVs, on the surface of commonly consumed fresh produce, including: apples, tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce. Herein, we demonstrated that viral infectivity declines within a few hours post-inoculation (p.i) on apples and tomatoes, and no infectious virus was detected at 24h p.i, while the virus persists in infectious form for 72h p.i on cucumbers and lettuce. The stability of viral RNA was examined by droplet-digital RT-PCR (ddRT-PCR), and it was observed that there is no considerable reduction in viral RNA within 72h p.i.
人类冠状病毒 (HCoVs) 主要与呼吸道感染有关。然而，有证据表明，高致病性 HCoVs，包括严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒 2 (SARS-CoV-2) 和中东呼吸综合征 (MERS-CoV)，会感染胃肠道 (GI) 并在感染个体的粪便中排出。这些观察结果引发了对 SARS-CoV-2 和 MERS-CoV 可能通过粪-口途径以及食源性传播的质疑。关于 HCoVs 在无生命表面存活的研究表明，这些病毒可以在数小时到数天内保持传染性，然而，关于新鲜农产品上病毒存活的数据有限，这些农产品通常生吃或经过最少的热处理。为了解决这一知识空白，我们研究了高度致病性 HCoVs 的替代物 HCoV-229E 在包括苹果、西红柿、黄瓜和生菜在内的常见食用新鲜农产品表面的持久性。在此，我们证明病毒在接种后数小时内（p.i）在苹果和西红柿上的感染力下降，在 24 小时 p.i 时未检测到感染性病毒，而在黄瓜和生菜上，病毒以感染性形式持续存在 72 小时 p.i。通过液滴数字 RT-PCR (ddRT-PCR) 检查了病毒 RNA 的稳定性，观察到在 72 小时 p.i 内病毒 RNA 没有明显减少。
