Longitudinal monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater using viral genetic markers and the estimation of unconfirmed COVID-19 cases

Lin Li; Lauren Mazurowski; Aimee Dewan; Madeline Carine; Laura Haak; Tatiana C. Guarin; Niloufar Gharoon Dastjerdi; Daniel Gerrity; Casey Mentzer; Krishna R. Pagilla

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.152958

Longitudinal monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater using viral genetic markers and the estimation of unconfirmed COVID-19 cases

Lin Li
, Lauren Mazurowski
, Aimee Dewan
, Madeline Carine
, Laura Haak
, Tatiana C. Guarin
, Niloufar Gharoon Dastjerdi
, Daniel Gerrity
, Casey Mentzer
, Krishna R. Pagilla

Research output: Articles / Notes › Scientific Article › peer-review

50 Scopus citations

Abstract

In this study, wastewater-based surveillance was carried out to establish the correlation between SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA concentrations in wastewater and the incidence of corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) from clinical testing. The influent wastewater of three major water reclamation facilities (WRFs) in Northern Nevada, serving a population of 390,750, was monitored for SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA gene markers, N1 and N2, from June 2020 through September 2021. A total of 614 samples were collected and analyzed. The SARS-CoV-2 concentrations in wastewater were observed to peak twice during the study period. A moderate correlation trend between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) incidence data from clinical testing and SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA concentrations in wastewater was observed (Spearman r = 0.533). This correlation improved when using weekly average SARS-CoV-2 marker concentrations of wastewater and clinical case data (Spearman r = 0.790), presumably by mitigating the inherent variability of the environmental dataset and the effects of clinical testing artifacts (e.g., reporting lags). The research also demonstrated the value of wastewater-based surveillance as an early warning signal for early detection of trends in COVID-19 incidence. This was accomplished by identifying that the reported clinical cases had a stronger correlation to SARS-CoV-2 wastewater monitoring data when they were estimated to lag 7-days behind the wastewater data. The results aided local decision makers in developing strategies to manage COVID-19 in the region and provide a framework for how wastewater-based surveillance can be applied across localities to enhance the public health monitoring of the ongoing pandemic.

Original language	English
Article number	152958
Journal	Science of the Total Environment
Volume	817
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.152958
State	Published - 15 Apr 2022
Externally published	Yes

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being

Keywords

COVID-19
Early warning
Long-term monitoring
SARS-CoV-2
Wastewater

Access to Document

10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.152958

Cite this

Li, L., Mazurowski, L., Dewan, A., Carine, M., Haak, L., Guarin, T. C., Dastjerdi, N. G., Gerrity, D., Mentzer, C., & Pagilla, K. R. (2022). Longitudinal monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater using viral genetic markers and the estimation of unconfirmed COVID-19 cases. Science of the Total Environment, 817, Article 152958. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.152958

@article{27e92d9e7656403ba39aed548ba4f8bc,

title = "Longitudinal monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater using viral genetic markers and the estimation of unconfirmed COVID-19 cases",

abstract = "In this study, wastewater-based surveillance was carried out to establish the correlation between SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA concentrations in wastewater and the incidence of corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) from clinical testing. The influent wastewater of three major water reclamation facilities (WRFs) in Northern Nevada, serving a population of 390,750, was monitored for SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA gene markers, N1 and N2, from June 2020 through September 2021. A total of 614 samples were collected and analyzed. The SARS-CoV-2 concentrations in wastewater were observed to peak twice during the study period. A moderate correlation trend between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) incidence data from clinical testing and SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA concentrations in wastewater was observed (Spearman r = 0.533). This correlation improved when using weekly average SARS-CoV-2 marker concentrations of wastewater and clinical case data (Spearman r = 0.790), presumably by mitigating the inherent variability of the environmental dataset and the effects of clinical testing artifacts (e.g., reporting lags). The research also demonstrated the value of wastewater-based surveillance as an early warning signal for early detection of trends in COVID-19 incidence. This was accomplished by identifying that the reported clinical cases had a stronger correlation to SARS-CoV-2 wastewater monitoring data when they were estimated to lag 7-days behind the wastewater data. The results aided local decision makers in developing strategies to manage COVID-19 in the region and provide a framework for how wastewater-based surveillance can be applied across localities to enhance the public health monitoring of the ongoing pandemic.",

keywords = "COVID-19, Early warning, Long-term monitoring, SARS-CoV-2, Wastewater",

author = "Lin Li and Lauren Mazurowski and Aimee Dewan and Madeline Carine and Laura Haak and Guarin, \{Tatiana C.\} and Dastjerdi, \{Niloufar Gharoon\} and Daniel Gerrity and Casey Mentzer and Pagilla, \{Krishna R.\}",

note = "Funding Information: This study has been funded by the City of Sparks, NV, USA, with funds from CARES Act and American Rescue Plan of the US Department of Treasury. John Martini, Michael Drinkwater from the City of Sparks, and collaborating partners from the City of Reno, Washoe County, and Washoe County Health District are gratefully acknowledged for their support and access to facilities/data to conduct this research. The authors are thankful to Dr. Subhash Verma and Dr. Timsy Uppal of the University of Nevada School of Medicine for their help in conducting the virus recovery studies. The authors have no Conflict of Interest in this research or the manuscript. Funding Information: This study has been funded by the City of Sparks, NV, USA, with funds from CARES Act and American Rescue Plan of the US Department of Treasury. John Martini, Michael Drinkwater from the City of Sparks, and collaborating partners from the City of Reno, Washoe County, and Washoe County Health District are gratefully acknowledged for their support and access to facilities/data to conduct this research. The authors are thankful to Dr. Subhash Verma and Dr. Timsy Uppal of the University of Nevada School of Medicine for their help in conducting the virus recovery studies. The authors have no Conflict of Interest in this research or the manuscript. This work was supported by the City of Sparks, Nevada, utilizing United States Treasury Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Appropriations [grant number GR 11493, University of Nevada, Reno] and American Rescue Plan (grant number GR 13942) to the University of Nevada, Reno's Nevada Water Innovation Institute. Funding Information: This work was supported by the City of Sparks, Nevada , utilizing United States Treasury Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Appropriations [grant number GR 11493 , University of Nevada, Reno ] and American Rescue Plan (grant number GR 13942 ) to the University of Nevada, Reno 's Nevada Water Innovation Institute. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2022 Elsevier B.V.",

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day = "15",

doi = "10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.152958",

language = "Ingl{\'e}s",

volume = "817",

journal = "Science of the Total Environment",

issn = "0048-9697",

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TY - JOUR

T1 - Longitudinal monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater using viral genetic markers and the estimation of unconfirmed COVID-19 cases

AU - Li, Lin

AU - Mazurowski, Lauren

AU - Dewan, Aimee

AU - Carine, Madeline

AU - Haak, Laura

AU - Guarin, Tatiana C.

AU - Dastjerdi, Niloufar Gharoon

AU - Gerrity, Daniel

AU - Mentzer, Casey

AU - Pagilla, Krishna R.

N1 - Funding Information: This study has been funded by the City of Sparks, NV, USA, with funds from CARES Act and American Rescue Plan of the US Department of Treasury. John Martini, Michael Drinkwater from the City of Sparks, and collaborating partners from the City of Reno, Washoe County, and Washoe County Health District are gratefully acknowledged for their support and access to facilities/data to conduct this research. The authors are thankful to Dr. Subhash Verma and Dr. Timsy Uppal of the University of Nevada School of Medicine for their help in conducting the virus recovery studies. The authors have no Conflict of Interest in this research or the manuscript. Funding Information: This study has been funded by the City of Sparks, NV, USA, with funds from CARES Act and American Rescue Plan of the US Department of Treasury. John Martini, Michael Drinkwater from the City of Sparks, and collaborating partners from the City of Reno, Washoe County, and Washoe County Health District are gratefully acknowledged for their support and access to facilities/data to conduct this research. The authors are thankful to Dr. Subhash Verma and Dr. Timsy Uppal of the University of Nevada School of Medicine for their help in conducting the virus recovery studies. The authors have no Conflict of Interest in this research or the manuscript. This work was supported by the City of Sparks, Nevada, utilizing United States Treasury Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Appropriations [grant number GR 11493, University of Nevada, Reno] and American Rescue Plan (grant number GR 13942) to the University of Nevada, Reno's Nevada Water Innovation Institute. Funding Information: This work was supported by the City of Sparks, Nevada , utilizing United States Treasury Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Appropriations [grant number GR 11493 , University of Nevada, Reno ] and American Rescue Plan (grant number GR 13942 ) to the University of Nevada, Reno 's Nevada Water Innovation Institute. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 Elsevier B.V.

PY - 2022/4/15

Y1 - 2022/4/15

N2 - In this study, wastewater-based surveillance was carried out to establish the correlation between SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA concentrations in wastewater and the incidence of corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) from clinical testing. The influent wastewater of three major water reclamation facilities (WRFs) in Northern Nevada, serving a population of 390,750, was monitored for SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA gene markers, N1 and N2, from June 2020 through September 2021. A total of 614 samples were collected and analyzed. The SARS-CoV-2 concentrations in wastewater were observed to peak twice during the study period. A moderate correlation trend between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) incidence data from clinical testing and SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA concentrations in wastewater was observed (Spearman r = 0.533). This correlation improved when using weekly average SARS-CoV-2 marker concentrations of wastewater and clinical case data (Spearman r = 0.790), presumably by mitigating the inherent variability of the environmental dataset and the effects of clinical testing artifacts (e.g., reporting lags). The research also demonstrated the value of wastewater-based surveillance as an early warning signal for early detection of trends in COVID-19 incidence. This was accomplished by identifying that the reported clinical cases had a stronger correlation to SARS-CoV-2 wastewater monitoring data when they were estimated to lag 7-days behind the wastewater data. The results aided local decision makers in developing strategies to manage COVID-19 in the region and provide a framework for how wastewater-based surveillance can be applied across localities to enhance the public health monitoring of the ongoing pandemic.

AB - In this study, wastewater-based surveillance was carried out to establish the correlation between SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA concentrations in wastewater and the incidence of corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) from clinical testing. The influent wastewater of three major water reclamation facilities (WRFs) in Northern Nevada, serving a population of 390,750, was monitored for SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA gene markers, N1 and N2, from June 2020 through September 2021. A total of 614 samples were collected and analyzed. The SARS-CoV-2 concentrations in wastewater were observed to peak twice during the study period. A moderate correlation trend between coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) incidence data from clinical testing and SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA concentrations in wastewater was observed (Spearman r = 0.533). This correlation improved when using weekly average SARS-CoV-2 marker concentrations of wastewater and clinical case data (Spearman r = 0.790), presumably by mitigating the inherent variability of the environmental dataset and the effects of clinical testing artifacts (e.g., reporting lags). The research also demonstrated the value of wastewater-based surveillance as an early warning signal for early detection of trends in COVID-19 incidence. This was accomplished by identifying that the reported clinical cases had a stronger correlation to SARS-CoV-2 wastewater monitoring data when they were estimated to lag 7-days behind the wastewater data. The results aided local decision makers in developing strategies to manage COVID-19 in the region and provide a framework for how wastewater-based surveillance can be applied across localities to enhance the public health monitoring of the ongoing pandemic.

KW - COVID-19

KW - Early warning

KW - Long-term monitoring

KW - SARS-CoV-2

KW - Wastewater

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85122687271

U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.152958

DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.152958

M3 - Artículo Científico

C2 - 35016937

AN - SCOPUS:85122687271

SN - 0048-9697

VL - 817

JO - Science of the Total Environment

JF - Science of the Total Environment

M1 - 152958

ER -

Longitudinal monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater using viral genetic markers and the estimation of unconfirmed COVID-19 cases

Abstract

UN SDGs

Keywords

Access to Document

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