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According to a new study published in the preprint journal of medRxiv, wastewater is a reliable way to track the spread of the Covid-19 and measure its impact. However, the use of proteins can help in tracking the virus effectively.
The researchers said SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater recently gained ground as a method of understanding the prevalence of Covid-19 in a community. Researchers are examining the wastewater by using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to amplify the nucleic acid.
Researchers are analysing the feasibility of measuring viral proteins instead since these are present at a higher load and are more stable than detecting it through RNAs.
The current study conducted by the researchers used the MPAD (Multiplex Paired-antibody Amplified Detection).
The aim was to evaluate the ability of this method to signal the presence of the virus more strongly and reliably, using wastewater samples derived from two Ottawa wastewater recovery facilities.
Wastewater is a highly variable system with regards to flow, mass, type and concentration of organisms, and other vital characteristics. However, RNA stability also varies with the conditions, the authors explained.
The researchers used a multiple marker technique to standardise the wastewater sample in terms of fecal content.
The researchers said: “The robust specificity and normalisation devolving from measuring all 9 (3 SAR-CoV-2, 6 fecal control markers) protein levels with this single, multiplex protein panel represent a significant advantage in any broad wastewater surveillance program.”
The researchers concluded that it is possible to detect and measure the structural proteins of the virus in primary sludge after PEG precipitation.
The data collected by the researchers also indicated the presence of an intact virus, though the infectivity of sewage was not confirmed. The team was able to successfully monitor the high variability of wastewater-based prevalence monitoring.
The researchers believe that the findings will help study the epidemiology of the disease, being more sensitive to the presence of the virus than RNA detection-based methods.
Researchers said that this method can help track the viral load in the community as a relatively simple method of surveillance, whether for institutions, schools, or homes.
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