tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Sci Total Environ
. 2022 Aug 13;158028.
doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.158028. Online ahead of print.
Sewage surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 at student campus residences in the Western Cape, South Africa
Noluxabiso Mangwana[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Edward Archer[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Christo Muller[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Wolfgang Preiser[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Gideon Wolfaardt[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Barbara Kasprzyk-Hordern[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Alno Carstens[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Ludwig Brocker[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Candice Webster[SUP] 7 [/SUP], David McCarthy[SUP] 8 [/SUP], Renee Street[SUP] 9 [/SUP], Angela Mathee[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Johan Louw[SUP] 10 [/SUP], Mongezi Mdhluli[SUP] 11 [/SUP], Rabia Johnson[SUP] 12 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
The current severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) diagnostic capacity is limited in defined communities, posing a challenge in tracking and tracing new infections. Monitoring student residences, which are considered infection hotspots, with targeted wastewater surveillance is crucial. This study evaluated the efficacy of SARS-CoV-2 targeted wastewater surveillance for outbreak mitigation at Stellenbosch University's student residences in South Africa. Using torpedo-style passive sampling devices, wastewater samples were collected biweekly from manholes at twelve Stellenbosch University Tygerberg (SUT) campus and Stellenbosch University-Main (SUM) campus student residences. The surveillance led to an early warning detection of SARS-CoV-2 presence on campus, followed by an informed management strategy leading to restriction of student activities on campus and a delay in the onset of the third wave that was experienced throughout the country. Moreover, the study highlighted the extent of possible infections at defined locations even when a low number of confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases were reported. The study also tracked the surge of the Delta and Omicron variants in the student residences using the Thermo Fisher TaqMan® RT-qPCR genotyping assay.
Keywords: COVID-19; Institution; Near-source WBE; Passive sampling; SARS-CoV-2; Student campus residences; Wastewater; Wastewater-based epidemiology.
. 2022 Aug 13;158028.
doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.158028. Online ahead of print.
Sewage surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 at student campus residences in the Western Cape, South Africa
Noluxabiso Mangwana[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Edward Archer[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Christo Muller[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Wolfgang Preiser[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Gideon Wolfaardt[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Barbara Kasprzyk-Hordern[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Alno Carstens[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Ludwig Brocker[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Candice Webster[SUP] 7 [/SUP], David McCarthy[SUP] 8 [/SUP], Renee Street[SUP] 9 [/SUP], Angela Mathee[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Johan Louw[SUP] 10 [/SUP], Mongezi Mdhluli[SUP] 11 [/SUP], Rabia Johnson[SUP] 12 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 35973539
- DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.158028
Abstract
The current severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) diagnostic capacity is limited in defined communities, posing a challenge in tracking and tracing new infections. Monitoring student residences, which are considered infection hotspots, with targeted wastewater surveillance is crucial. This study evaluated the efficacy of SARS-CoV-2 targeted wastewater surveillance for outbreak mitigation at Stellenbosch University's student residences in South Africa. Using torpedo-style passive sampling devices, wastewater samples were collected biweekly from manholes at twelve Stellenbosch University Tygerberg (SUT) campus and Stellenbosch University-Main (SUM) campus student residences. The surveillance led to an early warning detection of SARS-CoV-2 presence on campus, followed by an informed management strategy leading to restriction of student activities on campus and a delay in the onset of the third wave that was experienced throughout the country. Moreover, the study highlighted the extent of possible infections at defined locations even when a low number of confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases were reported. The study also tracked the surge of the Delta and Omicron variants in the student residences using the Thermo Fisher TaqMan® RT-qPCR genotyping assay.
Keywords: COVID-19; Institution; Near-source WBE; Passive sampling; SARS-CoV-2; Student campus residences; Wastewater; Wastewater-based epidemiology.