swabbing-urban-environment-pipeline-for-sampling-detection-sars-cov-2

Swabbing the Urban Environment - A Pipeline for Sampling and Detection of SARS-CoV-2 From Environmental Reservoirs

To control community transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) during the 2020 global pandemic, most countries ...

San Diego State University

Many commensal bacteria antagonize each other or their host by producing syringe-like secretion systems called contractile injection systems (CIS). Members of the  family have been shown to produce only one type of CIS-a contact-dependent type 6 secretion system that mediates bacterium-bacterium interactions. Here, we show that a second distinct cluster of genes from  bacteria from the human microbiome may encode yet-uncharacterized injection systems that we term  injection systems (BIS). We found that BIS genes are present in the gut microbiomes of 99% of individuals from the United States and Europe and that BIS genes are more prevalent in the gut microbiomes of healthy individuals than in those individuals suffering from inflammatory bowel disease. Gene clusters similar to that of the BIS mediate interactions between bacteria and diverse eukaryotes, like amoeba, insects, and tubeworms. Our findings highlight the ubiquity of the BIS gene cluster in the human gut and emphasize the relevance of the gut microbiome to the human host. These results warrant investigations into the structure and function of the BIS and how they might mediate interactions between  bacteria and the human host or microbiome. To engage with host cells, diverse pathogenic bacteria produce syringe-like structures called contractile injection systems (CIS). CIS are evolutionarily related to the contractile tails of bacteriophages and are specialized to puncture membranes, often delivering effectors to target cells. Although CIS are key for pathogens to cause disease, paradoxically, similar injection systems have been identified within healthy human microbiome bacteria. Here, we show that gene clusters encoding a predicted CIS, which we term  injection systems (BIS), are present in the microbiomes of nearly all adult humans tested from Western countries. BIS genes are enriched within human gut microbiomes and are expressed both  and  Further, a greater abundance of BIS genes is present within healthy gut microbiomes than in those humans with with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Our discovery provides a potentially distinct means by which our microbiome interacts with the human host or its microbiome.

A Distinct Contractile Injection System Gene Cluster Found in a Majority of Healthy Adult Human Microbiomes.

 Although SARS-CoV-2 is primarily transmitted by respiratory droplets and aerosols, transmission by fomites remains plausible. During Halloween, a major event for children in numerous countries, SARS-CoV-2 transmission risk via candy fomites worries many parents. To address this concern, we enrolled 10 recently diagnosed asymptomatic or mildly/moderately symptomatic COVID-19 patients to handle typical Halloween candy (pieces individually wrapped) under three conditions: normal handling with unwashed hands, deliberate coughing and extensive touching, and normal handling following handwashing. We then used a factorial design to subject the candies to two post-handling treatments: no washing (untreated) and household dishwashing detergent. We measured SARS-CoV-2 load by RT-qPCR and LAMP. From the candies not washed post-handling, we detected SARS-CoV-2 on 60% of candies that were deliberately coughed on, 60% of candies normally handled with unwashed hands, but only 10% of candies handled after hand washing. We found that treating candy with dishwashing detergent reduced SARS-CoV-2 load by 62.1% in comparison to untreated candy. Taken together, these results suggest that although the risk of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 by fomites is low even from known COVID-19 patients, viral RNA load can be reduced to near zero by the combination of handwashing by the infected patient and ≥1 minute detergent treatment after collection. We also found that the inexpensive and fast LAMP protocol was more than 80% concordant with RT-qPCR. The COVID-19 pandemic is leading to important tradeoffs between risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission and mental health due to deprivation from normal activities, with these impacts being especially profound in children. Due to the ongoing pandemic, Halloween activities will be curtailed as a result of the concern that candy from strangers might act as fomites. Here we demonstrate that these risks can be mitigated by ensuring that prior to handling candy, the candy giver washes their hands, and by washing collected candy with household dishwashing detergent. Even in the most extreme case, with candy deliberately coughed on by known COVID-19 patients, viral load was reduced dramatically after washing with household detergent. We conclude that with reasonable precautions, even if followed only by either the candy giver or the candy recipient, the risk of viral transmission by this route is very low.

Article	Year
A Distinct Contractile Injection System Gene Cluster Found in a Majority of Healthy Adult Human Microbiomes. mSystems\| PubMed ID: 32723799	2020
Handwashing and Detergent Treatment Greatly Reduce SARS-CoV-2 Viral Load on Halloween Candy Handled by COVID-19 Patients. mSystems\| PubMed ID: 33127739	2020

Maria I. Rojas

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