State of Alaska epidemiology bulletin: Hepatitis A among wastewater treatment workers--Juneau

1984 ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 21 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mitra Nasiri ◽  
Zohreh Yousefi Ghalejoogh ◽  
Angila Ataei-Pirkooh ◽  
Farah Bokharaei-Salim ◽  
Seyed Hamidreza Monavari ◽  
...  

Background: Limited sources of fresh water necessitate the application of health policies for treatment and decontamination of human sewage for further use. A wide variety of infectious agents, including bacteria, fungi, parasites, and viruses, can be found in sewage. Enteric viruses such as hepatitis A virus (HAV) can survive the current treatments and infect susceptible hosts. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the HAV contamination in human sewage before and after treatment in the wastewater treatment plant of Ekbatan town in Tehran, Iran, and analyze the phylogenetic properties of the identified viruses. Methods: Over a 12-month period, we collected the wastewater samples including influent, before chlorination, and effluent, from the wastewater treatment plant of Ekbatan town in Tehran, Iran. Ribonucleic acid (RNA) extraction, complementary deoxyribonucleic acid (cDNA) synthesis, and semi-nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were performed to identify HAV contamination. Phylogenetic analysis was performed to investigate subgenotypes of the virus. Results: HAV was detected in all influents and samples before chlorination, while the virus was detected in 50% of the effluent samples. All detected viruses belonged to subgenotype IB. Conclusions: Investigating the presence of HAV in sewage provides a general picture of the virus spread in the population of interest. HAV was detected in all influent samples, indicating that the infection is endemic in this area all year round. This also indicates the inability of the current treatment protocols in virus removal, which can be a threat to the public health.


2016 ◽  
Vol 82 (13) ◽  
pp. 3834-3845 ◽  
Author(s):  
Imen Ouardani ◽  
Syrine Turki ◽  
Mahjoub Aouni ◽  
Jesús L. Romalde

ABSTRACTHepatitis A virus (HAV) is the main causative agent of hepatitis infection associated with waterborne outbreaks worldwide. In Tunisia, there is no specific surveillance system for HAV and current secondary wastewater treatment processes are unable to remove viral particles, which present a potential public health problem. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of HAV in 271 raw and treated wastewater samples from five sewage treatment plants (STPs) during 13 months was performed. Moreover, the efficiency of three secondary wastewater treatment processes (conventional activated sludge, extended aeration, and oxidation ditch activated sludge) was evaluated. Data obtained demonstrated that HAV is endemic in Tunisia and circulates with high prevalence in both raw (66.9%) and treated (40.7%) wastewater. HAV circulates throughout the year in the coastal areas, with the highest rates found during summer and autumn, whereas in central Tunisia, high levels were shown in autumn and winter. Total virus removal was not achieved, since no difference in mean HAV loads was observed in effluents (6.0 × 103genome copies [GC]/ml) and influents (2.7 × 103GC/ml). The comparison of the HAV removal values of the three different wastewater treatment methods indicates that extended aeration and oxidation ditch activated sludge had better efficiency in removing viruses than conventional activated sludge did. Molecular characterization revealed that the vast majority of HAV strains belonged to subgenotype IA, with the cocirculation of subgenotype IB in wastewater treatment plants that collect tourism wastewater.IMPORTANCEThis report provides important data on the incidence, behavior, seasonality, and genotype distribution of HAV in the environment in Tunisia, as well as the risk of infection derived from its occurrence in effluents due to inadequate wastewater treatment. In addition, these findings seem to confirm that the prevalence of HAV depends on socioeconomic level, sanitary conditions in the communities, sewage facilities, the locality, and the climate. The wide dispersion of HAV in effluents proves the inefficacity of the current wastewater treatment processes used in Tunisia to remove virus; therefore, establishment of tertiary treatment processes or replacement of the medium-charge activated sludge (conventional activated sludge) by the low-charge version (oxidation ditch activated sludge) is absolutely needed. Rapid detection of the HAV genome in wastewater may provide a timely warning sign to health authorities to implement population protection measures.


Author(s):  
Charles D. Humphrey ◽  
E. H. Cook ◽  
Karen A. McCaustland ◽  
Daniel W. Bradley

Enterically transmitted non-A, non-B hepatitis (ET-NANBH) is a type of hepatitis which is increasingly becoming a significant world health concern. As with hepatitis A virus (HAV), spread is by the fecal-oral mode of transmission. Until recently, the etiologic agent had not been isolated and identified. We have succeeded in the isolation and preliminary characterization of this virus and demonstrating that this agent can cause hepatic disease and seroconversion in experimental primates. Our characterization of this virus was facilitated by immune (IEM) and solid phase immune electron microscopic (SPIEM) methodologies.Many immune electron microscopy methodologies have been used for morphological identification and characterization of viruses. We have previously reported a highly effective solid phase immune electron microscopy procedure which facilitated identification of hepatitis A virus (HAV) in crude cell culture extracts. More recently we have reported utilization of the method for identification of an etiologic agent responsible for (ET-NANBH).


Author(s):  
D.R. Jackson ◽  
J.H. Hoofnagle ◽  
A.N. Schulman ◽  
J.L. Dienstag ◽  
R.H. Purcell ◽  
...  

Using immune electron microscopy Feinstone et. al. demonstrated the presence of a 27 nm virus-like particle in acute-phase stools of patients with viral hepatitis, type A, These hepatitis A antigen (HA Ag) particles were aggregated by convalescent serum from patients with type A hepatitis but not by pre-infection serum. Subsequently Dienstag et. al. and Maynard et. al. produced acute hepatitis in chimpanzees by inoculation with human stool containing HA Ag. During the early acute disease, virus like particles antigenically, morphologically and biophysically identical to the human HA Ag particle were found in chimpanzee stool. Recently Hilleman et. al. have described similar particles in liver and serum of marmosets infected with hepatitis A virus (HAV). We have investigated liver, bile and stool from chimpanzees and marmosets experimentally infected with HAV. In an initial study, a chimpanzee (no.785) inoculated with HA Ag-containing stool developed elevated liver enzymes 21 days after exposure.


Author(s):  
C.D. Humphrey ◽  
T.L. Cromeans ◽  
E.H. Cook ◽  
D.W. Bradley

There is a variety of methods available for the rapid detection and identification of viruses by electron microscopy as described in several reviews. The predominant techniques are classified as direct electron microscopy (DEM), immune electron microscopy (IEM), liquid phase immune electron microscopy (LPIEM) and solid phase immune electron microscopy (SPIEM). Each technique has inherent strengths and weaknesses. However, in recent years, the most progress for identifying viruses has been realized by the utilization of SPIEM.


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