SARS-CoV-2 detection in wastewater

COVID-19 pandemic is a global concern which has caused millions of cases and deaths. Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) can track SARS-CoV-2 infection dynamics through wastewater. Aiming to detect the existence of pre-symptomatic or asymptomatic patients in specific areas prior clinical test results, and to remind special attention for viral spreading, the SARS-CoV-2 viral concentration in wastewater was monitored from April to October 2021.Wastewater samples were collected in 9 locations in Urbana-Champaign and a rural area nearby. Our study developed a timesaving WBE method, which used MgCl2 addition and centrifugation to concentrate SARS-CoV-2 into sludge, based on the understanding that enveloped virus RNA in sludge was dozens of times higher than it in supernatant. We correlated wastewater viral concentration data with clinical tests and found Pearson’s relationship showed weak to moderate positive in four of seven sampling locations. Campus town, the location where had most frequent clinical tests, performed the best correlation. In addition, it was found the appearance of undetectable RNA concentration overlapped with zero clinical cases. The infection peaks of reporting cases always occurred in the periods when viral concentration kept stable.U of I OnlyAuthor requested U of Illinois access only (OA after 2yrs) in Vireo ETD syste