Table 1.
Infectious SARS-CoV-2 evaluation in stool and wastewater samples.
| Reference | Country | Type of samples | Cell culture assay | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (Xiao et al., 2020) | China | Stool | 3 Positive stool samples for SARS-CoV-2 RNA obtained from 2 patients were tested for infectivity using the Vero E6 cell line | 2 out of 3 were positive for infectious viral particles |
| (Wölfel et al., 2020) | Germany | Stool | Experiment conducted using the same cell line used by Xiao et al. (2020), in two separate laboratories | No infectious SARS-CoV-2 particles was detected despite the high viral RNA load detected by RT-qPCR |
| (Zhang et al., 2020) | China | Stool | Vero cells were used for viral isolation from stool samples of unreported number of COVID-19 patients The presence of SARS-CoV-2 was confirmed by electron microscopic observation |
A virus particle with typical morphology of coronavirus was observed in one sample |
| (Jeong et al., 2020) | Republic of Korea | Stool | 3 Positive qPCR samples were subjected to SARS-CoV-2 isolation in Vero cells. One fecal specimen was selected to experimentally infect ferret and then viable virus titres in nasal washes were checked on 2, 4, 6 and 8 days post infection | No cultures were positive, however viable SARS-CoV-2 was isolated from the nasal washes of the stool treated ferret |
| (Kim et al., 2020) | Republic of Korea | Stool | 129 stool samples were tested for infectivity test using CaCo-2 cell line | No cultures were positive |
| (Wang et al., 2020a) | China | Stool | Four SARS-CoV-2 positive fecal specimens with high copy numbers were cultured to detect live virus. No details on cultivation method was reported | Viable SARS-CoV-2 was observed in the stool sample from 2 patients |
| (Albert et al., 2021) | Spain | Stool and sewage | Fecal sewage samples with highest RNA concentrations were used to inoculate Vero E6 cells | No cytopathic effect on Vero E6 cells was observed in any of the analyzed samples |
| (Dergham et al., 2021) | France | Stool | Vero cells were used for viral isolation from 106 stool samples of 46 COVID-19 patients | Viable SARS-CoV-2 was detected in 2 stool samples from 1 patient undergone a kidney transplant 21 years ago |
| (Cerrada-Romero et al., 2022) | Spain | Stool | Vero cells were used for viral isolation from 79 stools sample collected from 62 adult COVID-19 patients | No cultures were positive |
| (Rimoldi et al., 2020) | Italy | Raw and tertiary treated wastewater | SARS-CoV-2 infectivity in positive and negative samples for SARS-CoV-2 RNA was evaluated using Vero E6 cells | No infectious SARS-CoV-2 particles was detected in all samples |
| (Westhaus et al., 2021) | Germany | Influent raw wastewater, effluent and effluent after tertiary treatment | Infectivity of purified and concentrated influent and effluent samples (in both liquid and solid phases) were evaluated using differentiated Caco-2 cells | No infectious SARS-CoV-2 particle was detected in all samples |
| (Robinson et al., 2022) | USA | Raw wastewater | 10 positive raw wastewater samples for SARS-CoV-2 RNA were tested for infectivity using Vero E6 cells | No cytopathic effects were obtained |
| (Monteiro et al., 2022) | Portugal | Secondary treated wastewater (effluents) | Positive secondary-treated wastewater samples for SARS-CoV-2 RNA were tested for infectivity using Vero E6 cells | No infectious SARS-CoV-2 viral particles was obtained despite the high viral RNA load detected by RT-qPCR |