Interdisciplinary Center for River Basin Environment, University of Yamanashi, 4-3-11 Takeda, Kofu, Yamanashi 400-8511, Japan.
Department of Engineering, University of Yamanashi, 4-3-11 Takeda, Kofu, Yamanashi 400-8511, Japan.
Sci Total Environ. 2024 Oct 10;946:174419. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.174419. Epub 2024 Jul 2.
Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) is a critical tool for monitoring community health. Although much attention has focused on severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), other pathogens also pose significant health risks. This study quantified the presence of SARS-CoV-2, influenza A virus (Inf-A), and noroviruses of genogroups I (NoV-GI) and II (NoV-GII) in wastewater samples collected weekly (n = 170) from July 2023 to February 2024 from five wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan, by quantitative PCR. Inf-A RNA exhibited localized prevalence with positive ratios of 59 %-82 % in different WWTPs, suggesting regional outbreaks within specific areas. NoV-GI (94 %, 160/170) and NoV-GII (100 %, 170/170) RNA were highly prevalent, with NoV-GII (6.1 ± 0.8 log copies/L) consistently exceeding NoV-GI (5.4 ± 0.7 log copies/L) RNA concentrations. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in 100 % of the samples, with mean concentrations of 5.3 ± 0.5 log copies/L in WWTP E and 5.8 ± 0.4 log copies/L each in other WWTPs. Seasonal variability was evident, with higher concentrations of all pathogenic viruses during winter. Non-normalized and normalized virus concentrations by fecal indicator bacteria (Escherichia coli and total coliforms), an indicator virus (pepper mild mottle virus (PMMoV)), and turbidity revealed significant positive associations with the reported disease cases. Inf-A and NoV-GI + GII RNA concentrations showed strong correlations with influenza and acute gastroenteritis cases, particularly when normalized to E. coli (Spearman's ρ = 0.70-0.81) and total coliforms (ρ = 0.70-0.81), respectively. For SARS-CoV-2, non-normalized concentrations showed a correlation of 0.61, decreasing to 0.31 when normalized to PMMoV, suggesting that PMMoV is unsuitable. Turbidity normalization also yielded suboptimal results. This study underscored the importance of selecting suitable normalization parameters tailored to specific pathogens for accurate disease trend monitoring using WBE, demonstrating its utility beyond COVID-19 surveillance.
基于污水的流行病学（WBE）是监测社区健康的重要工具。尽管人们对导致 2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）的严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒 2（SARS-CoV-2）高度关注，但其他病原体也构成了重大的健康风险。本研究通过定量聚合酶链反应，定量检测了日本山梨县五个污水处理厂（WWTP）从 2023 年 7 月至 2024 年 2 月每周收集的 170 份污水样本中 SARS-CoV-2、甲型流感病毒（Inf-A）和诺如病毒基因组 I（NoV-GI）和 II（NoV-GII）的存在。Inf-A RNA 呈局部流行，不同 WWTP 的阳性率为 59%-82%，表明特定区域内存在局部暴发。NoV-GI（94%，160/170）和 NoV-GII（100%，170/170）RNA 高度流行，NoV-GII（6.1±0.8 log 拷贝/L）持续高于 NoV-GI（5.4±0.7 log 拷贝/L）RNA 浓度。100%的样本中检测到 SARS-CoV-2 RNA，WWTP E 的平均浓度为 5.3±0.5 log 拷贝/L，其他 WWTP 的平均浓度为 5.8±0.4 log 拷贝/L。所有致病性病毒的浓度在冬季均有明显升高，存在季节性变化。未归一化和归一化的病毒浓度与粪便指示菌（大肠杆菌和总大肠菌群）、指示病毒（辣椒轻斑驳病毒（PMMoV））和浊度呈显著正相关，与报告的疾病病例相关。Inf-A 和 NoV-GI+GII RNA 浓度与流感和急性肠胃炎病例呈强相关性，尤其是当分别归一化为大肠杆菌（Spearman's ρ=0.70-0.81）和总大肠菌群（ρ=0.70-0.81）时。对于 SARS-CoV-2，未归一化浓度的相关性为 0.61，归一化为 PMMoV 时降至 0.31，表明 PMMoV 不合适。浊度归一化也得到了不理想的结果。本研究强调了在使用 WBE 进行准确疾病趋势监测时，针对特定病原体选择合适的归一化参数的重要性，表明其在 COVID-19 监测之外具有实用价值。
