Author/Authors :
Nasiri, Mitra Department of Virology - School of Medicine - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran , Yousefi Ghalejoogh, Zohreh Department of Virology - School of Medicine - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran , Ataei-Pirkooh, Angila Department of Virology - School of Medicine - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran , Bokharaei-Salim, Farah Department of Virology - School of Medicine - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran , Monavari, Hamidreza Department of Virology - School of Medicine - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran , Tavakoli, Ahmad Department of Virology - School of Medicine - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran , Asadifar, Behnam Department of Virology - School of Medicine - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran , Esghaei, Maryam Department of Virology - School of Medicine - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran , Pasalari, Hasan Department of Environmental Health Engineering - School of Public Health - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran , Samimi-Rad, Katayoun Department of Virology - School of Public Health - Tehran University of Medical Sciences, TehranDepartment of Virology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran , Kiani, Jalal Department of Virology - School of Medicine - Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran
Abstract :
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 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.
Keywords :
Hepatitis A Virus , Phylogenetic Analysis , Sewage , WasteWater Treatment
