Centre for Infectious Disease Control (CIb), National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, The Netherlands.
Department of Human Genetics (HG), Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), Leiden, The Netherlands.
Sci Rep. 2023 Oct 19;13(1):17870. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-44500-0.
The implementation and integration of wastewater-based epidemiology constitutes a valuable addition to existing pathogen surveillance systems, such as clinical surveillance for SARS-CoV-2. In the Netherlands, SARS-CoV-2 variant circulation is monitored by performing whole-genome sequencing on wastewater samples. In this manuscript, we describe the detection of an AY.43 lineage (Delta variant) amid a period of BA.5 (Omicron variant) dominance in wastewater samples from two wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) during the months of August and September of 2022. Our results describe a temporary emergence, which was absent in samples from other WWTPs, and which coincided with peaks in viral load. We show how these lineage estimates can be traced back to lineage-specific substitution patterns. The absence of this variant from reported clinical data, but high associated viral loads suggest cryptic transmission. Our findings highlight the additional value of wastewater surveillance for generating insights into circulating pathogens.
基于污水的流行病学的实施和整合是对现有病原体监测系统（如针对 SARS-CoV-2 的临床监测）的有益补充。在荷兰，通过对污水样本进行全基因组测序来监测 SARS-CoV-2 变体的传播。在本文中，我们描述了在 2022 年 8 月和 9 月的两个月期间，从两个污水处理厂（WWTP）的污水样本中检测到 AY.43 谱系（Delta 变体），而当时 BA.5（Omicron 变体）占据主导地位。我们的结果描述了一种暂时出现的情况，这种情况在其他 WWTP 的样本中不存在，并且与病毒载量峰值同时出现。我们展示了如何根据谱系特异性替换模式追溯这些谱系估计值。该变体在报告的临床数据中不存在，但相关病毒载量很高，这表明存在隐匿性传播。我们的发现强调了污水监测在了解循环病原体方面的额外价值。
