A recent review paper from an international research group involving Hokkaido University and the University of Yamanashi in Japan shows how wastewater could provide a useful tool for monitoring COVID-19 and highlights the further research needed to develop this as a viable method for tracking virus outbreaks. This research was published in Science of the Total Environment.
The major transmission routes of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, are via inhalation from person to person, aerosol or droplets, and transmission via hands or contaminated materials. However, there is growing evidence of gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea amongst COVID-19 patients, and genetic material from the virus has been found not only in patients’ feces but also in wastewater.
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