Georgia WWSCAN Biweekly Newsletter Update 6/7/24

Welcome to the bi-weekly update for WWSCAN partners in Georgia! The samples provided up through 6/3/24 have been processed in the lab and data are on the site at data.wastewaterscan.org. You'll notice that there has been a gap in sampling recently at some sites; samples should be back again very soon.

We are excited to share that all Georgia sites will be continuing as part of our next phase of WWSCAN, through summer 2025! Nothing about the testing will change as part of this next phase, but look out for more opportunities for further discussion and engagement about the program and results.

If you notice any bugs on the site or have any comments about it, please continue to send your feedback via email wwscan_stanford_emory@lists.stanford.edu. We thank you for your partnership!

The methods for our assays are in the public domain and links for these are provided at the end of the newsletter.

SARS-CoV-2 RNA concentrations have been between 10,000 and 105,000 copies/gram in the last two weeks. The chart below shows the raw data over the last 365 days and the population-weighted aggregated trend line for all 8 Georgia sites when the data is normalized by PMMoV. The aggregated line and the National Levels benchmarks illustrate that SARS-CoV-2 N gene RNA concentrations among Georgia sites are within the middle third level of all concentrations measured in the last year. In the Southern region, SARS-CoV-2 is in the "High" wastewater category and trending upward.

As of 6/7/24, Big Creek, Johns Creek, and Little River are in the MEDIUM (3 sites) wastewater category. Columbus is in the LOW (1 site) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

Sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 from wastewater is available for RM Clayton and College Park (Camp Creek). The plots below show the relative proportions of different variants inferred from sequencing the entire genome of SARS-CoV-2 (Note: the sequencing variant plots are now available on the website, so the plots that are shown below are linked above if you want to interact with them). Results are based on sequencing of 2 samples per week, combined to provide a weekly value. Please note that the large gap of "no data" for College Park is because we had data available from preliminary testing while finalizing site selection for sequencing, and then began weekly sequencing in the middle of December.

In the most recent samples, KP.2 (65.5%) made up the largest proportion of lineages detected at College Park and JN.1 (dark purple) made up 24.6% of the lineages at College Park. Note that the most recent data is shown below & should be updated as more samples are analyzed (through May 4 at College Park). Data from RM Clayton is available on the website but not shown here due to reporting delays.

Sequencing data is now also available in aggregate across all sites in WWSCAN with sequencing data through June 1st. That plot is shown below and also suggests that JN.1 is the most abundant variant across all sites (25.1%). Then KP.2 was the second highest making up 23.0% across all sites.

Influenza A (IAV) RNA concentrations have been below 3,000 copies/gram in the last two weeks. The chart below shows the raw data and the population-weighted aggregated trend line for all 8 Georgia sites when the data is normalized by PMMoV is approaching the bottom of the middle third level. As of 6/7/24, Johns Creek, Big Creek, Columbus, and Little River are in the LOW (4 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

A couple of weeks ago beginning May 21st, we expanded prospective H5 marker testing to all WastewaterSCAN sites. Below is a heat map showing the Georgia sites with samples collected since May 15th. Over the last few weeks, results have been non-detect at all Georgia sites with data available. For more information about this testing and interpretation of results, see our FAQ sheet here.

Influenza B (IBV) RNA has not been detected at any Georgia site within the last two weeks, according to the heat map below.

The chart below shows IBV RNA concentrations raw data and the population-weighted aggregated trend line for all 8 Georgia sites when the data is normalized by PMMoV. As of 6/7/24, Columbus, Big Creek, Johns Creek, and Littler River are in the LOW (4 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) RNA has not been detected at these Georgia sites over the last two weeks. The chart below includes the raw data for each site since 2023. The aggregated line below shows that RSV RNA concentrations among Georgia sites are near the bottom of the middle third level of all concentrations measured in the last year. Nationally, RSV is not in onset.

As of 6/7/24, Columbus, Big Creek, Johns Creek, and Littler River are in the LOW (4 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

HMPV (human metapneumovirus) RNA concentrations in wastewater are below 43,000 copies/g. HMPV RNA concentrations in Georgia are within the upper third level of all concentrations measured in the last year. Big Creek & Johns Creek are in the HIGH (2 sites) wastewater category, as of 6/7/24. But Columbus & Little River are in the LOW (2 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

EV-D68 RNA has been detected at the Columbus and Big Creek sites over the last couple weeks, according to the heat map below. As a reminder, the color blue means the sample was non-detect for EV-D68 RNA and the colors get darker with higher concentrations. As of 6/7/24, all of the Roswell sites & Columbus are in the LOW (4 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

Parainfluenza RNA As a reminder, the program is temporarily sunsetting measurements of parainfluenza to run the new H5 specific influenza assay currently being tested at all WastewaterSCAN sites.

Norovirus GII (HuNoV GII) RNA concentrations range between 3,500,000 - 32,000,000 copies/g, and the population-weighted average line when the data is normalized by PMMoV for the 8 Georgia sites is approaching the upper third level. HuNoV GII RNA chart below also shows the raw data. As of 6/7/24, Little River is in the HIGH (1 site) wastewater category. Big Creek, Johns Creek, and Columbus are in the MEDIUM (3 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

Rotavirus RNA concentrations have been between 7,900 and 300,000 copies/g over the last two weeks. The chart below shows the population-weighted average line is shown in black plus the raw data for each site. As of 6/7/24, Little River is the HIGH (1 site) wastewater category. Columbus is in the MEDIUM (1 site) wastewater category. Big Creek and Johns Creek are in the LOW (2 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

Mpox DNA results have been non-detect at all Georgia sites in the last 21 days. This heat map shows data since July 2022. Sites are labeled in the rows and each date a sample was collected as a column. The color blue means the sample was non-detect for mpox DNA and the color maroon means Mpox DNA was detected. White indicates no sample was collected. Johns Creek, Big Creek, Columbus, and Little River are in the LOW (4 sites) wastewater category as of 6/7/24. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

Candida auris DNA has been detected at the Columbus site in the last two weeks, based on the heat map below. As of 6/7/24, all of the Roswell sites & the Columbus site are in the LOW (4 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

Hepatitis A RNA continues to be detected at the Little River site over the last two weeks, according to the heat map. As of 6/7/24, Little River is in the MEDIUM (1 site) wastewater category while Big Creek, Johns Creek, & Columbus are in the LOW (3 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for College Park, Utoy Creek, South River, and RM Clayton.

Protocols (Pre-analytical methods and SARS-CoV-2 analytical methods including controls):

• High Throughput RNA Extraction and PCR Inhibitor Removal of Settled Solids for Wastewater Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 RNA
• High Throughput pre-analytical processing of wastewater settled solids for SARS-CoV-2 RNA analyses
• Quantification of SARS-CoV-2 variant mutations (HV69-70, E484K/N501Y, del156-157/R158G, del143-145, LPPA24S, S:477-505, and ORF1a Del 141-143) in settled solids using digital RT-PCR
• High Throughput SARS-COV-2, PMMoV, and BCoV quantification in settled solids using digital RT-PCR

Pre-prints and peer-reviewed publications provided WWSCAN methods: 

• SARS-CoV-2 
• Influenza, Human metapneumovirus, Respiratory syncytial virus, Human parainfluenza
• Mpox
• Norovirus GII
• Adenovirus group F, Rotavirus, Candida auris, Hepatitis A
• Enterovirus D68

Newly published papers are available here:

• Solid-liquid partitioning of Dengue West Nile, Zika, Hepatitis A, Influenza A, and SARSCoV-2 viruses in wastewater from across the United States
• Detection of Hemagglutinin H5 Influenza A Virus Sequence in Municipal Wastewater Solids at Wastewater Treatment Plants with Increases in Influenza A in Spring, 2024
• Persistence of Human Respiratory Viral RNA in Wastewater Settled Solids

Public Health Factsheets:

• Influenza A Fact Sheet: Provides a summary of a November 2023 paper exploring how to analyze wastewater data to extract relevant public health insights on Influenza A. Click here to access the IAV fact sheet.
• RSV Fact Sheet: Provides a summary of a March 2024 paper exploring how to analyze wastewater data to extract relevant public health insights on RSV. Click here to access the RSV fact sheet.

New WastewaterSCAN Published Body of Work document:

• We are excited to share a new document that provides an overview of the program’s peer-reviewed scientific literature, organized by topics and themes. Click here to access the WastewaterSCAN published body of work.

A complete list of peer-reviewed publications utilizing the WWSCAN data is available here!

The next stakeholder meeting will take place next week on Friday, June 14th @ 12 PM EST. You can use this zoom link to join. Hope to see you there!