Use of ATP Readings to Predict a Successful Hygiene Intervention in the Workplace to Reduce the Spread of Viruses on Fomites

The purpose of this study was to validate the use of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) for evaluating hygiene intervention effectiveness in reducing viral dissemination in an office environment. The bacterial virus MS-2 was used to evaluate two scenarios, one where the hand of an individual was contaminated and another where a fomite was contaminated. MS-2 was selected as a model because its shape and size are similar to many human pathogenic viruses. Two separate experiments were conducted, one in which the entrance door push plate was inoculated and the other in which the hand of one selected employee was inoculated. In both scenarios, 54 selected surfaces in the office were tested to assess the dissemination of the virus within the office. Associated surface contamination was also measured employing an ATP meter. More than half of the tested hands and surfaces in the office were contaminated with MS-2 within 4 h. Next, an intervention was conducted, and each scenario was repeated. Half of the participating employees were provided hand sanitizer, facial tissues, and disinfecting wipes, and were instructed in their use. A significant (p < 0.05) reduction was observed in the number of surfaces contaminated with virus. This reduction in viral spread was evident from the results of both viral culture and the surface ATP measurements, although there was no direct correlation between ATP measurements with respect to viral concentration. Although ATP does not measure viruses, these results demonstrate that ATP measurements could be useful for evaluating the effectiveness of hygiene interventions aimed at preventing viral spread in the workplace.     

Norovirus GII.Pe Genotype: Tracking a Foodborne Outbreak on a Cruise Ship Through Molecular Epidemiology,Brazil, 2014

Norovirus (NoV) is recognized as the most common cause of foodborne outbreaks. In 2014, an outbreak of acute gastroenteritis occurred on a cruise ship in Brazil, and NoV became the suspected etiology. Here we present the molecular identification of the NoV strains and the use of sequence analysis to determine modes of virus transmission. Food (cream cheese, tuna salad, grilled fish, orange mousse, and vegetables soup) and clinical samples were analyzed by ELISA, conventional RT-PCR, qRT-PCR, and sequencing. Genogroup GII NoV was identified by ELISA and conventional RT-PCR in fecal samples from 5 of 12 patients tested (41.7%), and in the orange mousse food sample by conventional RT-PCR and qRT-PCR. Two fecal GII NoV samples and the orange mousse GII NoV sample were successfully genotyped as GII.Pe (ORF 1), revealed 98.0–98.8% identities among them, and shared phylogenetically distinct cluster. Establishing the source of a NoV outbreak can be a challenging task. In this report, the molecular analysis of the partial RdRp NoV gene provided a powerful tool for genotyping (GII.Pe) and tracking of outbreak-related samples. In addition, the same fast and simple extraction methods applied to clinical samples could be successfully used for complex food matrices, and have the potential to be introduced in routine laboratories for screening foods for presence of NoV.     

Use of Preservative Agents and Antibiotics for Increased Poliovirus Survival on Positively Charged Filters

Environmental surveillance of poliovirus (PV) and other non-enveloped viruses can help identify silent circulation and is necessary to certify eradication. The bag-mediated filtration system is an efficient method to filter large volumes of environmental waters at field sites for monitoring the presence of viruses. As filters may require long transit times to off-site laboratories for processing, viral inactivation or overgrowth of bacteria and fungi can interfere with virus detection and quantification (Miki and Jacquet in Aquatic Microb Ecol 51(2):195–208, 2008). To evaluate virus survival over time on ViroCap^? filters, the filters were seeded with PV type 1 (PV1) and/or MS2 and then dosed with preservatives or antibiotics prior to storage and elution. These filters were stored at various temperatures and time periods, and then eluted for PV1 and MS2 recovery quantification. Filters dosed with the preservative combination of 2% sodium benzoate and 0.2% calcium propionate had increased virus survival over time when stored at 25 °C, compared to samples stored at 25 °C with no preservatives. While elution within 24 h of filtration is recommended, if storage or shipping is required then this preservative mixture can help preserve sample integrity. Addition of an antibiotic cocktail containing cephapirin, gentamicin, and Proclin^? 300 increased recovery after storage at 4 and 25 °C, when compared to storage with no antibiotics. The antibiotic cocktail can aid sample preservation if access to appropriate antibiotics storage is available and sample cold chain is unreliable. This study demonstrated that the use of preservatives or antibiotics is a simple, cost-effective method to improve virus detection from ViroCap cartridge filters over time.     

DNA Heat Treatment for Improving qPCR Analysis of Human Adenovirus in Wastewater

PCR inhibitory substances in complex sample matrices can cause false negatives or under-estimation of target concentration. This study assessed DNA heat treatment for reducing inhibition during qPCR analysis of human adenovirus (HAdV) in wastewater samples. Inhibition was reduced by heat treating DNA, where mean HAdV concentration was increased by 0.71 log₁₀ GC/L (and up to 3.04 log₁₀ GC/L in one case), and replicate variability and false negatives were reduced. DNA heat treatment should be further investigated for improving reliability of HAdV concentration estimates in water, which can support more accurate assessment of health risks associated with viral pathogen exposure.     

Assessment and Evaluation of an Integrated Hybrid Anaerobic–Aerobic Sewage Treatment System for the Removal of Enteric Viruses

The capability of a cost-effective and a small size decentralized pilot wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) to remove enteric viruses such as rotavirus, norovirus genogroup I (GGI), norovirus genogroup II (GGII), Hepatitis E virus (HEV), and adenovirus was studied. This pilot plant is an integrated hybrid anaerobic/aerobic setup which consisted of anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB), biological aerated filter (BAF), and inclined plate settler (IPS). Both the UASB and BAF are packed with a non-woven polyester fabric (NWPF). Results indicated that the overall log₁₀ reductions of enteric viruses’ genome copies through the whole system were 3.1 ± 1, 3.3 ± 0.5, and 2.6 ± 0.9 log₁₀ for rotavirus, norovirus GGI, and adenovirus, respectively. Reduction efficiency for both norovirus GGII and HEV after the different treatment steps could not be calculated because there were no significant numbers of positive samples for both viruses. The overall reduction of rotavirus infectious units through the whole system was 2.2 ± 0.8 log₁₀ reduction which is very close to the overall log₁₀ reduction of adenovirus infectious units through the whole system which was 2.1 ± 0.8 log₁₀ reduction. There was no considerable difference in the removal efficiency for different rotavirus G and P types. Adenovirus 41 was the only type detected in the all positive samples. Although the pilot WWTP investigated is cost effective, has a small footprint, does not need a long distance network pipes, and easy to operate, its efficiency to remove enteric viruses is comparable with the conventional centralized WWTPs.     

海水生物滤器氨氮沿程转化规律模型

生物滤器是海水循环水养殖系统中的核心水处理单元,其主要用于去除对养殖生物有害的氨氮、有机物等.本研究基于吸附原理和一级反应生物膜理论构建了氨氮在生物滤器中沿程转化规律的数学模型,并通过实验加以验证.实验所用生物滤器采用竹制空心生化球填料,装填高度为70 cm,在pH为7.1～7.6,DO为5～7 mg.L-1,气水比20∶1左右,有机负荷约为4g.(m3.h)-1,水力停留时间(HRT)为1 h条件下,生物滤器中氨氮的去除主要发生在填料高度0～10 cm处,10～70 cm处氨氮去除量很少.进水氨氮质量浓度的增大和水力停留时间的降低都会导致出水氨氮质量浓度增大.此外,模型对进水氨氮质量浓度较低时的沿程出水氨氮质量浓度具有很好的预测效果;当进水氨氮质量浓度较高时,预测值略低于实际结果.     

高岭土负载纳米Fe/Ni同时去除水中Cu2+和NO3-

工业废水常含有不同污染物如重金属离子和无机阴离子,而如何有效去除复合污染物就成为环境科学前沿研究的挑战性课题.这些污染物因化学性质不同而导致去除机理和途径也不同.本文采用合成高岭土负载纳米双金属Fe/Ni(K-Fe/Ni)同步去除水中Cu2+和NO-3.结果表明K-Fe/Ni能有效去除水中Cu2+和NO-3,但它们的去除效果却会相互受到影响.在Cu2+浓度为200mg·L-1时,NO-3的去除率达到42.5%;而未加入Cu2+时,NO-3的去除率仅有26.9%,说明Cu2+的存在提高了NO-3降解效率.同样,水中NO-3的存在也影响Cu2+的去除(Cu2+去除率从99.7%降到96.5%).但NO-3浓度对去除Cu2+的影响小于Cu2+浓度对NO-3的影响.通过BET比表面积、X射线衍射(XRD)、扫描电镜(SEM)、X射线能量散射(EDS)和X射线光电分析(XPS)对K-Fe/Ni表征的结果显示,反应后K-Fe/Ni的表面存在铁的氧化物、Ni0和被还原的Cu0.基于以上结果,我们发现K-Fe/Ni同步去除水中Cu2+和NO-3的机理是:高岭土负载下的纳米Fe0作为还原剂,在Ni0的催化产氢作用下将Cu2+还原成Cu0并沉积在K-Fe/Ni上而形成纳米Fe/Ni/Cu三金属催化剂,从而加速催化水中NO-3降解.