Grid monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 in sewage for an early-warning sign of community outbreak

Involved Member: Prof. Tong ZHANG

Up till present, the research team led by Prof. Tong Zhang has collected more than 1000 domestic sewage samples from sewage collection systems in different areas for nucleic acid tests of the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. The initial results of the research have demonstrated that the sewage surveillance could be used for the following purposes:

1. Providing early warning signals for COVID-19 outbreak. The detection rate of viruses in sewage can reflect the overall spread of virus in the community, and could be used as supplementary information to complement clinical testing to provide early warning signals of community outbreak.

2. Tracking the development trend of community outbreak. The research team will continue to collect a large amount of data for analysis and make reference to the actual clinical diagnosis data to develop a systematic evaluation method and follow-up actions.

3. Complementing the monitoring of estates with infection clusters. The research team flexibly adjusted the monitoring plan, conducted targeted sampling and analysis at buildings with infection clusters, and provided complementary information for clinical tests.

Reference:

https://www.hku.hk/press/press-releases/detail/22201.html

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