Tropical and Highlands Veterinary Research Institute, School of Veterinary Medicine, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Jr. 28 de Julio s/n, Km 34, margen izquierda, Carretera Central, El Mantaro, Jauja, Junin, Peru; Department of Animal Health and Public Health, School of Veterinary Medicine, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Av. Circunvalacion 2800, San Borja, Lima, Peru.
Department of Human Medicine, School of Human Medicine, Universidad Nacional del Centro del Peru, Av. Mariscal Castilla 3909, Huancayo, Peru.
Sci Total Environ. 2023 Dec 20;905:167161. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.167161. Epub 2023 Sep 18.
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has demonstrated that Wastewater Based Epidemiology is a fast and economical alternative for monitoring severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) at the community level in high-income countries. In the present study, wastewater from a city in the Peruvian Highlands, which lacks a wastewater treatment plant, was monitored for one year to assess the relationship between the concentration of SARS-CoV-2 and the reported cases of COVID-19 in the community. Additionally, we compared the relationship between rotavirus (RV), norovirus genogroup II (NoV GGII), and human adenovirus (HAdV) with the number of reported cases of acute gastroenteritis. Before commencing the analysis of the samples, the viral recovery efficacy of three processing methods was determined in spiked wastewater with SARS-CoV-2. This evaluation demonstrated the highest recovery rate with direct analysis (72.2 %), as compared to ultrafiltration (50.8 %) and skimmed milk flocculation (5.6 %). Wastewater monitoring revealed that 72 % (36/50) of the samples tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, with direct analysis yielding the highest detection frequency and quantification of SARS-CoV-2. Furthermore, a strong correlation was observed between the concentration of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater and the reported cases of COVID-19, mainly when we shift the concentration of SARS-CoV-2 by two weeks, which allows us to anticipate the onset of the fourth and fifth waves of the pandemic in Peru up to two weeks in advance. All samples processed using the skimmed milk flocculation method tested positive and showed high concentrations of RV, NoV GGII, and HAdV. In fact, the highest RV concentrations were detected up to four weeks before outbreaks of acute gastroenteritis reported in children under four years of age. In conclusion, the results of this study suggest that periodic wastewater monitoring is an excellent epidemiological tool for surveillance and can anticipate outbreaks of infectious diseases, such as COVID-19, in low- and middle-income countries.
2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行表明，在高收入国家，基于污水的流行病学是在社区层面快速、经济地监测严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒 2（SARS-CoV-2）的替代方法。在本研究中，监测了秘鲁高地一个没有污水处理厂的城市的污水一年，以评估 SARS-CoV-2 浓度与社区内 COVID-19 报告病例之间的关系。此外，我们比较了轮状病毒（RV）、诺如病毒基因群 II（NoV GGII）和人腺病毒（HAdV）与报告的急性胃肠炎病例数之间的关系。在开始分析样本之前，我们在含有 SARS-CoV-2 的加标污水中确定了三种处理方法的病毒回收率效果。与超滤（50.8%）和脱脂乳絮凝（5.6%）相比，该评估表明直接分析（72.2%）的回收率最高。污水监测显示，50 份样本中有 72%（36/50）检测出 SARS-CoV-2 阳性，直接分析的 SARS-CoV-2 检测频率和定量最高。此外，在污水中 SARS-CoV-2 浓度与 COVID-19 报告病例之间观察到很强的相关性，主要是当我们将 SARS-CoV-2 的浓度推迟两周时，这使我们能够提前两周预测秘鲁 COVID-19 大流行的第四和第五波的开始。使用脱脂乳絮凝法处理的所有样本均呈阳性，且 RV、NoV GGII 和 HAdV 浓度很高。事实上，RV 浓度最高的情况是在 4 岁以下儿童报告急性胃肠炎爆发前的 4 周检测到的。总之，本研究结果表明，定期污水监测是一种出色的流行病学监测工具，可以预测低、中收入国家传染病（如 COVID-19）的爆发。
