Investigation of Human and Animal Viruses in Water Matrices from a Rural Area in Southeastern Region of Brazil and Their Potential Use as Microbial Source-Tracking Markers

• Published in: Food and environmental virology Vol. 15; no. 1; pp. 21 - 31
• Main Authors: dos Santos, Debora Regina Lopes, Silva-Sales, Marcelle, Fumian, Tulio Machado, Maranhão, Adriana Gonçalves, Malta, Fábio Correia, Ferreira, Fernando César, Pimenta, Marcia Maria, Miagostovich, Marize Pereira
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01-03-2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adenoviruses; Adenoviruses, Human; Adenoviruses, Porcine; Animal health; Animals; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Brazil; Breeding sites; Cattle; Chemistry/Food Science; Epidemiology; Food Science; Genomes; Humans; Microorganisms; Original Paper; Polyomavirus; Raw sewage; Rotavirus; Rural areas; Sewage; Swine; Tracking; Tracking equipment; Virology; Viruses; Water; Water Microbiology; Water pollution; Brazil; Porcine adenovirus; Bovine polyomavirus; Rotavirus A; Microbial source tracking; Host-specific viruses; Human adenovirus
• ISSN: 1867-0334; 1867-0342
• DOI: 10.1007/s12560-022-09544-x

This study assessed the sources of contamination of water matrices in a rural area using detection of a host-specific virus (human adenovirus [HAdV], porcine adenovirus [PAdV] and bovine polyomaviruses [BoPyV]) as potential microbial source-tracking tool, and rotavirus A [RVA], given its epidemiological importance in Brazil. From July 2017 to June 2018, 92 samples were collected from eight points (P1-P8) of surface and raw waters in southeastern region of Brazil. Fifty-five (59.8%) were positive for HAdV, 41 (44.5%) for RVA, 10 (10.9%) for PAdV and four (4.3%) for BoPyV. HAdV and RVA were detected at all sites, and over the entire sampling period, PAdV was detected at a porcine breeding area and at Guarda River site, presenting high concentrations up to 2.6 × 10
9
genome copies per liter [GC/L], and viral concentrations ranging from 9.6 × 10
1
to 7.1 × 10
7
, while BoPyV (1.5 × 10
4
GC/L–9.2 × 10
5
GC/L) was only detected in samples from the bovine breeding areas. The combination of human and animal virus circulation presents a potential impact in the environment due to raw sewage discharge from regional communities, as well as potential hazard to human and animal health.