Source: Ohio Department of Health
In a new initiative to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19, a network across Ohio is studying samples of wastewater to look for the presence of gene copies/fragments of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the disease. Research in the United States and elsewhere has shown that non-infectious RNA (ribonucleic acid) from SARS-CoV-2 can be excreted in the feces of both symptomatic and asymptomatic infected people and can be detected in wastewater as many as three to seven days before those infections lead to increases in case counts or hospitalizations.
As such, monitoring raw wastewater in sewage collection systems can provide an early warning of disease increase in a community. Community and public health leaders can use this early warning information to make decisions about protective actions to help limit further spread of the disease before more cases are identified.
This wastewater monitoring initiative is a collaboration among the Ohio Department of Health, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Ohio Water Resources Center at The Ohio State University, and other participating universities, including The University of Toledo, Kent State University, and the University of Akron. As the network expands, sampling and analysis will include other universities with laboratory capabilities.
More information and data from participating sites are available online.