Hepatitis A virus in environmental water samples from the Amazon Basin

Hepatitis A virus (HAV) is a significant waterborne human pathogen. Of the global supply of potable water, Brazil retains 13%, of which 75% resides in the Amazon Basin. Although hepatitis A morbidity has declined progressively in Brazil as a whole, it remains high in the Amazon region. We used neste...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Water research (Oxford) 2007-03, Vol.41 (6), p.1169-1176
Main Authors: De Paula, V.S., Diniz-Mendes, L., Villar, L.M., Luz, S.L.B., Silva, L.A., Jesus, M.S., da Silva, N.M.V.S., Gaspar, A.M.C.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amazon Basin
Applied sciences
Brazil
drinking water
environmental assessment
Environmental Monitoring
Environmental water samples
Exact sciences and technology
Freshwater
Genotype IA
Genotype IB
Hepatitis A virus
Hepatitis A virus - classification
Hepatitis A virus - isolation & purification
microbial load
Molecular Sequence Data
Other industrial wastes. Sewage sludge
Phylogeny
Pollution
Qualitative PCR
Quantitative real-time RT–PCR
Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
river water
sampling
viral hepatitis
Viral Structural Proteins - genetics
Wastes
Water Microbiology
water pollution
Water Supply
Water treatment and pollution
waterborne diseases
watersheds
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Summary:Hepatitis A virus (HAV) is a significant waterborne human pathogen. Of the global supply of potable water, Brazil retains 13%, of which 75% resides in the Amazon Basin. Although hepatitis A morbidity has declined progressively in Brazil as a whole, it remains high in the Amazon region. We used nested and real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT–PCR) to detect and quantify the viral load in water samples from the Amazon Basin. Most samples tested positive (92%), with viral loads varying from 60 to 5500 copies /L, depending on sanitary conditions and the degree of flooding. Nested RT–PCR of the VP1-2A region detected HAV RNA in 23% of the samples. In low viral load samples, HAV was detected only with real-time RT–PCR, suggesting that this technique is useful for monitoring HAV contamination. The presence of HAV in water samples constitutes a serious public health problem.
ISSN:0043-1354
1879-2448
DOI:10.1016/j.watres.2006.11.029