Adenovirus 41 diversity in Arizona (USA) using wastewater-based epidemiology, long-range PCR, and pathogen sequencing between October 2019 and March 2020.

By coupling long-range polymerase chain reaction, wastewater-based epidemiology, and pathogen sequencing, we show that adenovirus type 41 hexon-sequence lineages, described in children with hepatitis of unknown origin in the United States in 2021, were already circulating within the country in 2019. We also observed other lineages in the wastewater, whose complete genomes have yet to be documented from clinical samples.

Nine phage genomes recovered from wastewater in Tempe, AZ, October 2019-March 2020.

We describe nine microvirus genomes identified in wastewater in Tempe, AZ, USA, between October 2019 and March 2020. The major capsid protein (MCP) encoded in these genomes phylogenetically cluster together and are distinct from the MCPs of microviruses identified in Mexico and Argentina.

Impact of LC-MS/MS quantification methods on analytical results by example of nationwide U.S. environmental samples.

Although different quantification methods are extensively used in environmental chemistry, the impact of the choice of method on the quality and range of analytical results is understudied. This two-part study consists of (a) in-lab evaluation and (b) a traditional meta-analysis (n = 66) of commonly used quantification methods): (i) external calibration; (ii) isotope dilution method with authentic target analogs; (iii) isotope dilution with non-target standards; and (iv) standard addition prior to LC-MS/MS in liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) by example of antibiotics in sewage sludge from across the U.S.

Integrated multiomic wastewater-based epidemiology can elucidate population-level dietary behaviour and inform public health nutrition assessments.

Population-level nutritional assessments often rely on self-reported data, which increases the risk of recall bias. Here, we demonstrate that wastewater-based epidemiology can be used for near real-time population dietary assessments. Neighbourhood-level, untreated wastewater samples were collected monthly from within an urban population in the south-western United States from August 2017 to July 2019.

Wastewater surveillance uncovers regional diversity and dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 variants across nine states in the USA.

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) is a non-invasive and cost-effective approach for monitoring the spread of a pathogen within a community. WBE has been adopted as one of the methods to monitor the spread and population dynamics of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, but significant challenges remain in the bioinformatic analysis of WBE-derived data. Here, we have developed a new distance metric, CoVdist, and an associated analysis tool that facilitates the application of ordination analysis to WBE data and the identification of viral population changes based on nucleotide variants.

Canine Parvovirus 2C Identified in Dog Feces from Poop Bags Collected from Outdoor Waste Bins in Arizona USA, June 2022.

Canine parvoviruses (CPVs) are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in dogs. However, surveillance has been largely limited to clinically manifest cases, resulting in a dearth of CPV genomic information on virus type, abundance, and diversity, limiting our understanding of its evolutionary dynamics. We tested the feasibility of using dog feces in poop bags collected from outdoor waste bins as a source for environmental surveillance of CPV.

Leveraging an established neighbourhood-level, open access wastewater monitoring network to address public health priorities: a population-based study.

Background: Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the US opioid epidemic triggered a collaborative municipal and academic effort in Tempe, Arizona, which resulted in the world's first open access dashboard featuring neighbourhood-level trends informed by wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE). This study aimed to showcase how wastewater monitoring, once established and accepted by a community, could readily be adapted to respond to newly emerging public health priorities.

Methods: In this population-based study in Greater Tempe, Arizona, an existing opioid monitoring WBE network was modified to track SARS-CoV-2 transmission through the analysis of 11 contiguous wastewater catchments.

Systematic scoping review evaluating the potential of wastewater-based epidemiology for monitoring cardiovascular disease and cancer.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cancer are collectively responsible for tens of millions of global deaths each year. These rates are projected to intensify as the COVID-19 pandemic has caused delays in individualized diagnostics, or exacerbated prevalence due to Post Acute Coronavirus (COVID-19) Syndrome. Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) has successfully been employed as a useful tool for generating population-level health assessments, and was examined here in this systematic scoping literature review to (i) identify endogenous human biomarkers reported to indicate CVD or cancer in clinical practice, (ii) assess specificity to the indicated diseases, (iii) evaluate the utility for estimating population-level disease prevalence in community wastewater, and (iv) contextualize the obtained information for monitoring CVD and cancer presence via WBE.

Occurrence of Z-drugs, benzodiazepines, and ketamine in wastewater in the United States and Mexico during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Z-drugs, benzodiazepines and ketamine are classes of psychotropic drugs prescribed for treating anxiety, sleep disorders and depression with known side effects including an elevated risk of addiction and substance misuse. These drugs have a strong potential for misuse, which has escalated over the years and was hypothesized here to have been exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) constitutes a fast, easy, and relatively inexpensive approach to epidemiological surveys for understanding the incidence and frequency of uses of these drugs.

Surveillance of rhinovirus diversity among a university community identifies multiple types from all three species including an unassigned rhinovirus A genotype.

We determine the presence and diversity of rhinoviruses in nasopharyngeal swab samples from 248 individuals who presented with influenza-like illness (ILI) at a university clinic in the Southwest United States between October 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021. We identify at least 13 rhinovirus genotypes (A11, A22, A23, A25, A67, A101, B6, B79, C1, C17, C36, and C56, as well a new genotype [AZ88**]) and 16 variants that contributed to the burden of ILI in the community. We also describe the complete capsid protein gene of a member (AZ88**) of an unassigned rhinovirus A genotype.

Mass trends of parabens, triclocarban and triclosan in Arizona wastewater collected after the 2017 FDA ban on antimicrobials and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Antimicrobials like parabens, triclosan (TCS), and triclocarban (TCC) are of public health concern worldwide due to their endocrine-disrupting properties and ability to promote antimicrobial drug resistance in human pathogens. The overall use of antimicrobials presumably has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, whereas TCS and TCC may have experienced reductions in use due to their recent ban from thousands of over-the-counter (OTC) personal care products by the U.S.

Canine picornaviruses detected in wastewater in Arizona, USA 2019 and 2021.

Virus surveillance by wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) in two Arizona municipalities in Maricopa County, USA (~700,000 people), revealed the presence of six canine picornavirus (CanPV) variants: five in 2019 and one in 2021. Phylogenetic analysis suggests these viruses might be from domestic dog breeds living within or around the area. Phylogenetic and pairwise identity analyses suggest over 15 years of likely enzootic circulation of multiple lineages of CanPV in the USA and possibly globally.

Assessing population-level stress through glucocorticoid hormone monitoring in wastewater.

Stress is oftentimes overlooked in societies, despite its life-threatening impact. Here, we assessed the feasibility of measuring endogenous stress hormones to estimate population-level stress by wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE). Two primary glucocorticoids, cortisol and cortisone, were monitored in wastewater by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), to assess changes in these physiological markers of stress in a student population (n = 26,000 ± 7100) on a university campus in the southwestern U.

A framework for wastewater sample collection from a sewage cleanout to inform building-scale wastewater-based epidemiology studies.

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) is a public health tool utilized for drug surveillance, and more recently, infectious disease monitoring of SARS-CoV-2. Sample collection is historically performed at a wastewater treatment plant, however, at this spatial resolution, much information related to actionable and contextually relevant community health data may be lost. Sampling from within the sewer collection system is now being employed more widely, bringing unique challenges, including health and safety concerns related to sample collection.

Opportunities and limits of wastewater-based epidemiology for tracking global health and attainment of UN sustainable development goals.

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) emerged as a powerful, actionable health management tool during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hypothesizing future uses, we explored its potential for real-time, tracking of progress in attaining United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) globally as a non-expensive method using existing infrastructure. We inventoried (i) literature-documented sewerage infrastructure, (ii) demographics of populations served, and (iii) WBE markers informative of 9 SDGs.

Implementing wastewater monitoring on American Indian reservations to assess community health indicators.

Healthcare access and health-related information for American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN) communities is often limited. A potential solution to acquire additional population level health data is through wastewater-derived measurements, a method termed wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE), however, due to often remote locations with rudimentary wastewater infrastructure, the feasibility of implementing WBE on an AIAN reservation is unclear. In this study, we i) performed a preliminary assessment of percent connectivity of the top 10 most populous tribal reservations using available wastewater treatment facility information from the Environmental Protection Agency Enforcement and Compliance History Online database and satellite imagery, and ii) performed a sampling campaign on a select tribal reservation to measure common WBE indicators of health and behavior.

Comparison of high-frequency in-pipe SARS-CoV-2 wastewater-based surveillance to concurrent COVID-19 random clinical testing on a public U.S. university campus.

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) is utilized globally as a tool for quantifying the amount of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) within communities, yet the efficacy of community-level wastewater monitoring has yet to be directly compared to random Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) clinical testing; the best-supported method of virus surveillance within a single population. This study evaluated the relationship between SARS-CoV-2 RNA in raw wastewater and random COVID-19 clinical testing on a large university campus in the Southwestern United States during the Fall 2020 semester. Daily composites of wastewater (24-hour samples) were collected three times per week at two campus locations from 16 August 2020 to 1 January 2021 (n = 95) and analyzed by reverse transcriptase-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) targeting the SARS-CoV-2 E gene.

FDA Device Oversight From 1906 to the Present.

This article examines the history of device oversight by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Significant regulatory changes occurred in response to injuries caused by Dalkon Shield intrauterine devices. This article summarizes those changes as well as continued efforts by the FDA to strengthen device oversight and address areas of concern.

COVID-19 Pandemic and Indigenous Representation in Public Health Data.

Public Health 3.0 calls for the inclusion of new partners and novel data to bring systemic change to the US public health landscape. The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has illuminated significant data gaps influenced by ongoing colonial legacies of racism and erasure.

Wastewater-Based Epidemiology and Long-Read Sequencing to Identify Enterovirus Circulation in Three Municipalities in Maricopa County, Arizona, Southwest United States between June and October 2020.

We used wastewater-based epidemiology and amplicon-based long-read high-throughput sequencing for surveillance of enteroviruses (EVs) in Maricopa County, Arizona, Southwest United States. We collected 48 samples from 13 sites in three municipalities between 18 June and 1 October 2020, and filtered (175 mL each; 0.45 µm pore size) and extracted RNA from the filter-trapped solids.