Abstract
The airborne route is the dominant form of COVID-19 transmission, and therefore, the development of methodologies to quantify SARS-CoV-2 in bioaerosols is needed. We aimed to identify SARS-CoV-2 in bioaerosols by using a highly efficient sampler for the collection of 1-3 µm particles, followed by a highly sensitive detection method. 65 bioaerosol samples were collected in hospital rooms in the presence of a COVID-19 patient using a liquid impinger sampler. The SARS-CoV-2 genome was detected by ddPCR using different primer/probe sets. 44.6% of the samples resulted positive for SARS-CoV-2 following this protocol. By increasing the sampled air volume from 339 to 650 L, the percentage of positive samples went from 41% to 50%. We detected five times less positives with a commercial one-step RT-PCR assay. However, the selection of primer/probe sets might be one of the most determining factor for bioaerosol SARS-CoV-2 detection since with the ORF1ab set more than 40% of the samples were positive, compared to <10% with other sets. In conclusion, the use of a liquid impinger collector and ddPCR is an adequate strategy to detect SARS-CoV-2 in bioaerosols. However, there are still some methodological aspects that must be adjusted to optimize and standardize a definitive protocol.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; bioaerosol; ddPCR; liquid impinger sampler.
【저자키워드】 COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, bioaerosol, ddPCR, liquid impinger sampler., 【초록키워드】 protocol, hospital, bioaerosol, SARS-CoV-2 detection, SARS-CoV-2 genome, methodology, RT-PCR assay, ORF1ab, COVID-19 patient, COVID-19 transmission, followed by, Volume, Particles, PCR assay, positive, ORF1, positive sample, dominant, FIVE, identify, detect, collected, adjusted, less, methodological, 【제목키워드】 SARS-CoV-2 detection,