Scientists from the interdisciplinary research group on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in
Wastewater monitoring helps to quickly andunobtrusively tracking the spread of COVID-19. Additional information allows health authorities to track the pandemic at the community level. More recently, SARS-CoV-2 virus fragments have been detected in residential areas in Singapore as part of a proactive wastewater surveillance program. This information, along with follow-up testing, allowed the country's Ministry of Health to respond quickly to the situation.
However, the detection of variants of the coronavirus withwastewater monitoring is less common due to problems with existing technologies. Next-generation sequencing for wastewater monitoring is time consuming and expensive. The tests also lack sensitivity. An international team of scientists in a new study sought to tackle this problem.
In a study published injournal Environmental Science & Technology Letters, scientists explain an innovative molecular detection method based on allele-specific RT-qPCR that detects and quantifies the B.1.1.7 (Alpha) variant. The developed assay, tested and validated on wastewater samples from 19 US communities, is capable of reliably detecting and quantifying low levels of the B.1.1.7 (Alpha) variant with low cross-reactivity and variant proportions as low as 1 percent in mixed SARS virus backgrounds. -CoV-2.
A method aimed at protein spike mutations that predict variant B.1.1.7 (Alpha) can be implemented using commercially available RT-qPCR protocols.
Read more
The slowing down of the Earth's rotation caused the release of oxygen on the planet
Astronomers spot unusual structures in deep space
See more 60,000-year-old Neanderthal rock art
AMR - Antimicrobial Resistance
RT-qPCR - quantitative PCR reverse transcription.