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| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Artículo científico |
| Language: | en |
| Published: |
Environmental pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987)
2026
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| Online Access: | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42269744/ |
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Table of Contents:
- Environmental surveillance of enteric viruses in mussels reveals reduced contamination during the pandemic restriction period. Solinc, Manja Kuhar, Urska Kajin, Maja Henigman, Urska Jamnikar-Ciglenecki, Urska The present study investigated the occurrence of enteric viruses in mussels and evaluated differences in viral contamination between the COVID-19 and post-COVID-19 periods. Mussel samples (n = 434) were collected from Slovenian production areas between November 2020 and October 2024, with a one-year interruption from May 2022 to May 2023 and were tested for viral RNA using RT-qPCR. A marked difference in viral detection was observed between the two study periods. Enteric viral RNA was detected in 22.4% of samples collected during the COVID-19 period, compared with 62.2% in the post-COVID-19 period. Samples containing multiple viral RNAs were also more frequent post-pandemic. Norovirus genogroup II was the predominant virus in both periods, increasing from 15.4% during the COVID-19 period to 35.1% in the post-COVID-19 period, while Norovirus genogroup I increased from 0.4% to 22.9%. Human Astrovirus was the second most frequently detected virus, rising from 8.5% to 25.0% between the two periods. Rotavirus and Aichi virus were detected only sporadically, whereas Hepatitis A virus and Hepatitis E virus were not detected. Significant seasonal effects were observed only in the post-COVID-19 period, with higher detection frequencies during colder months. The substantially lower detection rate of enteric viruses during the COVID-19 period suggests that non-pharmaceutical interventions implemented during the pandemic were associated with reduced viral circulation and lower environmental contamination of coastal waters. The findings further demonstrate that local environmental conditions and seasonality influence viral contamination in shellfish, highlighting mussels as effective sentinel matrices for monitoring enteric viruses in marine environments.