Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in the Indoor and Outdoor Areas of Urban Public Transport Systems of Three Major Cities of Portugal in 2021
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Sampling Sites
2.2. Collection of Air and Surface Samples
2.3. RNA Extraction and RT-qPCR
3. Results
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
- Leung, N.H.L. Transmissibility and Transmission of Respiratory Viruses. Nat. Rev. Microbiol. 2021, 19, 528–545. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Dyani, L. COVID-19 rarely spreads through surfaces. So why are we still deep cleaning? Nature 2021, 590, 26–28. [Google Scholar]
- Greenhalgh, T.; Jimenez, J.L.; Prather, K.A.; Tufekci, Z.; Fisman, D.; Schooley, R. Ten Scientific Reasons in Support of Airborne Transmission of SARS-CoV-2. Lancet 2021, 397, 1603–1605. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). SARS-CoV-2 Transmission. Available online: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/science/science-briefs/sars-cov-2-transmission.html#print (accessed on 30 April 2022).
- WHO Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19): How Is It Transmitted? Available online: https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/coronavirus-disease-covid-19-how-is-it-transmitted (accessed on 16 August 2021).
- Lewis, D. The Challenges of Making Indoors Safe. Nature 2021, 592, 22–25. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- WHO Roadmap to Improve and Ensure Good Indoor Ventilation in the Context of COVID-19. Available online: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240021280 (accessed on 1 June 2021).
- Moreno, T.; Pintó, R.M.; Bosch, A.; Moreno, N.; Alastuey, A.; Minguillón, M.C.; Anfruns-Estrada, E.; Guix, S.; Fuentes, C.; Buonanno, G.; et al. Tracing Surface and Airborne SARS-CoV-2 RNA inside Public Buses and Subway Trains. Environ. Int. 2021, 147, 106326. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Troko, J.; Myles, P.; Gibson, J.; Hashim, A.; Enstone, J.; Kingdon, S.; Packham, C.; Amin, S.; Hayward, A.; Van-Tam, J.N. Is Public Transport a Risk Factor for Acute Respiratory Infection? BMC Infect. Dis. 2011, 11, 16. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Abdullah, M.; Ali, N.; Javid, M.A.; Dias, C.; Campisi, T. Public Transport versus Solo Travel Mode Choices during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Self-Reported Evidence from a Developing Country. Transp. Eng. 2021, 5, 100078. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Marra, A.D.; Sun, L.; Corman, F. The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Public Transport Usage and Route Choice: Evidences from a Long-Term Tracking Study in Urban Area. Transp. Policy 2022, 116, 258–268. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- González, A.B.R.; Wilby, M.R.; Díaz, J.J.V.; Pozo, R.F. Characterization of COVID-19’s Impact on Mobility and Short-Term Prediction of Public Transport Demand in a Mid-Size City in Spain. Sensors 2021, 21, 6574. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Tiikkaja, H.; Viri, R. The Effects of COVID-19 Epidemic on Public Transport Ridership and Frequencies. A Case Study from Tampere, Finland. Transp. Res. Interdiscip. Perspect. 2021, 10, 100348. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Luo, K.; Lei, Z.; Hai, Z.; Xiao, S.; Rui, J.; Yang, H.; Jing, X.; Wang, H.; Xie, Z.; Luo, P.; et al. Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in Public Transportation Vehicles: A Case Study in Hunan Province, China. Open Forum Infect. Dis. 2020, 7, ofaa430. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Harris, J.E. The Subways Seeded the Massive Coronavirus Epidemic in New York City; National Bureau of Economic Research: Cambridge, MA, USA, 2020. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Di Carlo, P.; Chiacchiaretta, P.; Sinjari, B.; Aruffo, E.; Stuppia, L.; De Laurenzi, V.; Di Tomo, P.; Pelusi, L.; Potenza, F.; Veronese, A.; et al. Air and Surface Measurements of SARS-CoV-2 inside a Bus during Normal Operation. PLoS ONE 2020, 15, e0235943. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Passos, R.G.; Silveira, M.B.; Abrahão, J.S. Exploratory Assessment of the Occurrence of SARS-CoV-2 in Aerosols in Hospital Facilities and Public Spaces of a Metropolitan Center in Brazil. Environ. Res. 2021, 195, 110808. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Comunian, S.; Dongo, D.; Milani, C.; Palestini, P. Air Pollution and COVID-19: The Role of Particulate Matter in the Spread and Increase of COVID-19’s Morbidity and Mortality. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, 4487. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Instituto Nacional de Saúde Doutor Ricardo Jorge (INSA). Evolução Do Número de Casos de COVID-19 Em Portugal: 09-04-2021. Available online: https://www.insa.min-saude.pt/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Report_covid19_09_04_2021.pdf (accessed on 30 April 2022).
- Santarpia, J.L.; Rivera, D.N.; Herrera, V.L.; Morwitzer, M.J.; Creager, H.M.; Santarpia, G.W.; Crown, K.K.; Brett-Major, D.M.; Schnaubelt, E.R.; Broadhurst, M.J.; et al. Aerosol and Surface Contamination of SARS-CoV-2 Observed in Quarantine and Isolation Care. Sci. Rep. 2020, 10, 12732. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). CDC 2019-Novel Coronavirus (2019-NCoV) Real-Time RT-PCR Diagnostic Panel. Available online: https://www.fda.gov/media/134922/download (accessed on 30 April 2022).
- Direção-Geral da Saúde (DGS) Relatório de Situação 08-04-2021. Available online: https://www.ipbeja.pt/COVID19/BoletmDirio/BoletimCovid-198_04_21.pdf (accessed on 30 April 2022).
- Khan, K.A.; Cheung, P. Presence of Mismatches between Diagnostic PCR Assays and Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 Genome. R. Soc. Open Sci. 2020, 7, 200636. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Pivato, A.; Amoruso, I.; Formenton, G.; Di Maria, F.; Bonato, T.; Vanin, S.; Marion, A.; Baldovin, T. Evaluating the Presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in the Particulate Matters during the Peak of COVID-19 in Padua, Northern Italy. Sci. Total Environ. 2021, 784, 147129. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Chirizzi, D.; Conte, M.; Feltracco, M.; Dinoi, A.; Gregoris, E.; Barbaro, E.; La Bella, G.; Ciccarese, G.; La Salandra, G.; Gambaro, A.; et al. SARS-CoV-2 Concentrations and Virus-Laden Aerosol Size Distributions in Outdoor Air in North and South of Italy. Environ. Int. 2021, 146, 106255. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Liu, Y.; Ning, Z.; Chen, Y.; Guo, M.; Liu, Y.; Gali, N.K.; Sun, L.; Duan, Y.; Cai, J.; Westerdahl, D.; et al. Aerodynamic Analysis of SARS-CoV-2 in Two Wuhan Hospitals. Nature 2020, 582, 557–560. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Hadei, M.; Mohebbi, S.R.; Hopke, P.K.; Shahsavani, A.; Bazzazpour, S.; Alipour, M.; Jafari, A.J.; Bandpey, A.M.; Zali, A.; Yarahmadi, M.; et al. Presence of SARS-CoV-2 in the Air of Public Places and Transportation. Atmos. Pollut. Res. 2021, 12, 302–306. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
Cities (Region) | Public Transport Systems (Total Number) | Sample Locations (Number of Samples) | Sampling Location Type | Total Number of Samples | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Air sampling | City A (North) | Train station (n = 2) | Entrance hall (n = 1) | Indoor | 13 |
Waiting room (n = 1) | Indoor | ||||
Middle platform (n = 1) | Outdoor | ||||
Front of the station (n = 1) | Outdoor | ||||
Bus station a (n = 5) | Bus stop (n = 1) | Outdoor | |||
City B (Center) | Train station (n = 1) | Entrance hall (n = 1) | Indoor | 9 | |
Waiting room (n = 1) | Indoor | ||||
Middle platform (n = 1) | Outdoor | ||||
Front of the station (n = 1) | Outdoor | ||||
Bus station a (n = 5) | One sample in each for a total of 5 samples | Outdoor | |||
City C (Center) | Train station (n = 1) | Entrance hall (n = 1) | Indoor | 9 | |
Waiting room (n = 1) | Indoor | ||||
Middle platform (n = 1) | Outdoor | ||||
Front of the station (n = 1) | Outdoor | ||||
Bus station a (n = 5) | One sample in each station (n = 1) | Outdoor | |||
Surface sampling | City A to City B City B to City A City B to City C City C to City B | Trains (n = 14) | Window (n = 1) Arm rest (n = 1) Grab handles b (n = 2) Door button (n = 1) | Indoor | 70 |
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. |
© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Share and Cite
da Silva, P.G.; Gonçalves, J.; Nascimento, M.S.J.; Sousa, S.I.V.; Mesquita, J.R. Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in the Indoor and Outdoor Areas of Urban Public Transport Systems of Three Major Cities of Portugal in 2021. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19, 5955. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19105955
da Silva PG, Gonçalves J, Nascimento MSJ, Sousa SIV, Mesquita JR. Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in the Indoor and Outdoor Areas of Urban Public Transport Systems of Three Major Cities of Portugal in 2021. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022; 19(10):5955. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19105955
Chicago/Turabian Styleda Silva, Priscilla Gomes, José Gonçalves, Maria São José Nascimento, Sofia I. V. Sousa, and João R. Mesquita. 2022. "Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in the Indoor and Outdoor Areas of Urban Public Transport Systems of Three Major Cities of Portugal in 2021" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 10: 5955. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19105955