Quantification of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater samples from hospitals treating COVID-19 patients during the first wave of the pandemic in Brazil.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a global health crisis, and wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) has emerged as an important tool to assist public health decision-making. Recent studies have shown that the SARS-CoV-2 RNA concentration in wastewater samples is a reliable indicator of the severity of the pandemic for large populations. However, few studies have established a strong correlation between the number of infected people and the viral concentration in wastewater due to variations in viral shedding over time, viral decay, infiltration, and inflow.

Characterisation and perspectives of energetic use of dissolved gas recovered from anaerobic effluent with membrane contactor.

Biogas is a source of renewable energy, and its production and use has been validated in anaerobic-based sewage treatment plants (STPs). However, in these systems, a large amount of methane is lost as dissolved methane (D-CH) in the liquid effluent. In this study, the characteristics and potential energetic uses of the gas recovered during the desorption of D-CH from anaerobic effluents with hollow fibre membrane contactors were investigated.

Antibiotic resistance profile of wastewater treatment plants in Brazil reveals different patterns of resistance and multi resistant bacteria in final effluents.

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are recognized as important sources of Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria (ARBs) and Antibiotic Resistant Genes (ARGs), and might play a role in the removal and dissemination of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the environment. Detailed information about AMR removal by the different treatment technologies commonly applied in urban WWTPs is needed. This study investigated the occurrence, removal and characterization of ARBs in WWTPs employing different technologies: WWTP-A (conventional activated sludge-CAS), WWTP-B (UASB reactor followed by biological trickling filter) and WWTP-C (modified activated sludge followed by UV disinfection-MAS/UV).

Spatiotemporal Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in the Sewage of Three Major Urban Areas in Peru: Generating Valuable Data Where Clinical Testing Is Extremely Limited.

Peru has been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. By January 2022, Peru had surpassed 200 000 COVID-19 deaths, constituting the highest death rate per capita worldwide. Peru has had several limitations during the pandemic: insufficient testing access, limited contact tracing, a strained medical infrastructure, and many economic hurdles.

Long-term monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in sewage samples from specific public places and STPs to track COVID-19 spread and identify potential hotspots.

Coronavirus pandemic started in March 2020 and since then has caused millions of deaths worldwide. Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) can be used as an epidemiological surveillance tool to track SARS-CoV-2 dissemination and provide warning of COVID-19 outbreaks. Considering that there are public places that could be potential hotspots of infected people that may reflect the local epidemiological situation, the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA was analyzed by RT-qPCR for approximately 16 months in sewage samples from five public places located in the metropolitan area of Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil: the sewage treatment plant of Confins International Airport (AIR), the main interstate bus terminal (BUS), an upscale shopping centre (SHC1), a popular shopping centre (SHC2) and a university institute (UNI).