Early Identification of SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Wastewater

Genomic surveillance of wastewater yielded the initial evidence of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants in an Oregon community.

Repeated surges in COVID-19 cases and attendant hospitalizations and deaths may have been caused by emergence of mutant variants, some of which have exhibited increased contagion, lethality, or both. Early detection of the appearance of such variants of concern has proven useful in predicting surges of infection and its complications in communities and nations.

Sutton et al. hypothesized that, to identify emerging variants of concern, genomic sequencing of viruses in wastewater would be more efficient and less costly than individual-level surveillance. They used multilocus sequence typing (MLST) — which reveals a set of mutations unique to a variant — to characterize SARS-CoV-2 variants in wastewater in Linn County, Oregon. Prior to the peri…

Reviewing Author

Stephen G. Baum, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardClinical Infectious Diseases

RoyaltiesUpToDate

Editorial BoardsMedical Letter

Stephen G. Baum, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardClinical Infectious Diseases

RoyaltiesUpToDate

Editorial BoardsMedical Letter

Early Identification of SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Wastewater

Topics

Reviewing Author