As more and more individuals are getting infected with the COVID-19 virus, scientists have been trying to find a way to contain this infectious disease. With more than 9 lakh people infected and over 44,000 dead as of 1 April 2020, COVID-19 is still rapidly spreading around the globe.

Scientists are of course trying to find the cure and vaccines for this infectious disease. In addition to this, some scientists have also been looking for ways to help restrict the spread of COVID-19 - especially in countries that are in the early stages of COVID-19 infection.

Case in point: researchers at the Cranfield University might have found a way to detect the SARS-CoV-2 infection in the wastewaters of the communities infected with the virus.

Scientists from Cranfield University, UK, believe that wastewater-based epidemiology through paper analytical devices can help in accurately predicting the potential spread of the virus by picking up its traces from the urine and faeces of the disease carriers that enter the water systems. 

This test is usually meant for the people who are asymptomatic but are not sure if they are infected with COVID-19 or not. This testing would help the officials to determine if a specific community or an area has COVID-19 carriers. This would help the authorities to enable rapid screening, quarantine and preventive measures in the COVID-19 carrier areas. The scientists believe that with the help of this device, they will be able to see an absolute and immediate picture of the health of the population.

  1. What does the wastewater test do?
  2. Is wastewater test for COVID-19 effective?
  3. How is wastewater test done for COVID-19?
  4. Is wastewater test for COVID-19 more effective than other tests?
  5. Doctors for Wastewater test for early detection of COVID-19

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) is a technique by which scientists can find out specific human exposure to contaminants and pathogens by testing the faeces and urine from their wastewater systems. WBE acts as an essential tool to provide information about the following things: 

  • Use of drugs (both legal and illegal)
  • Pesticides
  • Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP)
  • Pathogens such as Escherichia coli and Clostridium perfringens.
  • Personal care products (shampoos, soaps)
  • Traces of some diseases like diabetes, allergies, oxidative stress and even cancer.
  • Doping substances like anabolic steroids, human growth hormone and diuretics.
  • Products used for the treatment of erectile dysfunction

In the case of COVID-19 - where asymptomatic patients can also transmit the disease - this test may even help to identify hotspots: or areas from which there are high chances of transmission.

Read more: How COVID-19 spreads

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Wastewater tests have shown tremendous results in finding various infectious diseases in past such as malaria, rotavirus A, Zika virus and even HIV. These paper-based kits have already been successfully used to conduct the tests for rapid veterinary diagnosis in India and for the detection of malaria among rural populations in Uganda.

This time the scientists at the Cranfield Water Science Institute have used this technique to find the places which have been affected with COVID-19. The scientists believe that if they would be able to monitor COVID-19 in a community at an early stage with the help of WBE, a powerful intervention can be done as soon as possible to restrain the movements of the people living in that area to minimise the spread of the infection in the public.

Wastewater test can be done with the help of a simple paper testing device which is folded and unfolded in steps to filter the nucleic acids (DNA or RNA) of pathogens derived from the wastewater samples. The testing paper has preloaded reagents which cause a biochemical reaction that detects whether the sample has the nucleic acid of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19 virus) or not. 

The results of the test are very clear as a green circle on the paper indicates positive whereas a blue circle indicates negative. 

The scientists have already developed and tested a specific paper device to test the genetic material of the COVID-19 virus from wastewater. 

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The reasons why wastewater tests are more effective than other tests are:

  • This test would help in preventing the spread of the disease from a particular region as it tests COVID-19 even before patients start showing symptoms.
  • This test requires very little equipment and resources. It is done with the help of a paper device.
  • These test kits are easy to stack, store and transport. This would enable the test kits to reach markets across continents relatively quickly.
  • The device used for this test is cheap and costs less than £1 which is equivalent to Rs. 93 in India.

Dr Rahul Gam

Infectious Disease
8 Years of Experience

Dr. Arun R

Infectious Disease
5 Years of Experience

Dr. Neha Gupta

Infectious Disease
16 Years of Experience

Dr. Anupama Kumar

Infectious Disease

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