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Human adenovirus (HAdV) infections can occur throughout the year. Cases of HAdV-associated respiratory disease have been more common in the late winter, spring, and early summer. In this study, to provide viral pollution data for further epidemiological studies and governmental actions, the presence of HAdV in the aquatic environment was quantitatively surveyed in the summer. This study was conducted to compare the efficiencies of nested-PCR (polymerase chain reaction) and qPCR (quantitative PCR) for detecting HAdV in environmental waters. A total of 73 water samples were collected from Puzi River in Taiwan and subjected to virus concentration methods. In the results, qPCR had much better efficiency for specifying the pathogen in river sample. HAdV41 was detected most frequently in the river water sample (10.9%). The estimated HAdV concentrations ranged between 6.75 × 10² and 2.04 × 109 genome copies/L. Significant difference was also found in heterotrophic plate counts, conductivity, water temperature, and water turbidity between presence/absence of HAdV. HAdV in the Puzi River may pose a significant health risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the progress in water and wastewater treatment technologies, waterborne diseases are still a major concern of public health. In the reported water-related outbreaks, viruses constitute one of the main causal agents. Enteroviruses are one of the most viruses monitored in water and are often used as an indicator of viral pollution. Isolation and identification of this virus are now regularly based on molecular tools. However published or commercial protocols for detection of these viruses in water are frequently lacking of validation processes and performance evaluation in such complex samples. A method for enterovirus detection in environmental water has been developed, its performance has been evaluated and compared with several commercial kits. The sensitivity of commercial methods in clinical samples, ranged between 89% and 100%, while the sensitivity in seeded environmental matrices fell between 16% and 91%. This method showed the best performance in environmental samples and was subsequently applied on surface and treated wastewater. The results showed the large dissemination of enteroviruses in an urbanized river. The results also emphasized the importance of good knowledge of the method's limits for its utilization in environmental samples in order to minimize false negatives and to avoid underestimating viral concentration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Viral aerosols can have a major impact on public health and on the dynamics of infection. Once aerosolized, viruses are subjected to various stress factors and their integrity and potential of infectivity can be altered. Empirical characterization is needed in order to predict more accurately the fate of these bioaerosols both for short term and long term suspension in the air. Here the susceptibility to aerosolization of the monkeypox virus (MPXV), associated with emerging zoonotic diseases, was studied using a 10.7L rotating chamber. This chamber was built to fit inside a Class three biological safety cabinet, specifically for studying airborne biosafety level three (BSL3) microorganisms. Airborne viruses were detected by culture and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) after up to 90h of aging. Viral concentrations detected dropped by two logs for culture analysis and by one log for qPCR analysis within the first 18h of aging; viral concentrations were stable between 18 and 90h, suggesting a potential for the MPXV to retain infectivity in aerosols for more than 90h. The rotating chamber used in this study maintained viral particles airborne successfully for prolonged periods and could be used to study the susceptibility of other BSL3 microorganisms. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Transmission of viruses via surface water is a major public health concern. To determine the viral concentration in rivers of a densly-populated area in Germany, the virus adsorption elution (VIRADEL) method was optimized for downstream PCR applications. Using a high-salt alkaline phosphate buffer for elution, the median recovery efficiency from spiked 1l water samples ranged from 21.3% to 100% for JC polyomavirus, human adenovirus type 5, Echovirus 11, and norovirus genogroup I. Analyses of 41 water samples collected during the winter 2007/08 from the rivers Ruhr and Rhine yielded detection rates 97.5% for adenoviruses and human polyomavirus (JC, BK), and 90% for group A rotaviruses. Noroviruses genogroup II were detected in 31.7% of the samples and only one sample was positive for enteroviruses. Virus concentrations ranged from 9.4 to 2.3×104 gen.equ./l. However, the genome equivalents/liter determined for the RNA viruses and their detection frequency are only lower limits, since the concentration procedure leads to carry-over of inhibitors of the reverse transcription step. Sequence analyses of the PCR products revealed that the adenovirus and rotavirus PCRs used could cross-react with animal viruses from the respective virus families. These results suggest that detection of human polyomavirus genomes is the most sensitive and specific marker for contamination of surface water with viruses from human sewage. Although we could routinely detect nucleic acids of viral pathogens in river water by the PCR-optimized VIRADEL method, threshold levels of viral nucleic acids above which there is a risk of infection with viruses derived from human remain to be determined. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The study was designed to genotype individual Cryptosporidium oocysts using an 18S rRNA gene-based semi-nested PCR and direct sequencing procedure. Positive PCR amplification was observed in all single C. parvum HNJ-1 oocyst samples tested. Semi-nested PCR and direct sequencing was applied to Cryptosporidium oocysts isolated from sewage and river water. The procedure could genotype 54% of FITC-stained single oocysts isolated from sewage and 32% from river water. The predominant genotype in both sewage and river water was C. parvum genotype 1, accounting for 33 and 25%, respectively, of all the FITC-stained intact Cryptosporidium oocysts present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports on the polymerase chain reaction evaluation of viral contamination in five shellfish beds over a 21-month period. Viral extraction performed on dissected tissues and clinically most important enteric viruses; Two sites regularly contaminated by fecal coliforms with the highest percentage of viral contamination.