The secret behind the wastewater in New York City, USA
The spread of the new coronavirus has long been a headache, and the earlier emergence of the Delta variant has taken over many U.S. states at a rapid pace. This variant of the virus is more lethal, spreads faster and is even somewhat immune to vaccines. According to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and researchers across the country, the new variant of Omicron may have been present in New York City wastewater for more than a week before the first cases of the variant were detected in the United States.
New crown mutation combination in New York wastewater uniquely resistant to vaccine
Since last June, a team of virologists and microbiologists from Queens College and Queens Community College of the City University of New York, The New School and the University of Missouri have been studying wastewater from 14 New York City wastewater treatment plants, collecting samples once a week and analyzing them for virus concentrations.
In January, the researchers went a step further and analyzed different COVID-19 variants of the virus in the effluent. They found four combinations of COVID mutations that, when compared to a global database of more than 2.5 million genetically sequenced variants of the virus, were found to be never before seen and to be antibody resistant, meaning that they could reduce vaccine effectiveness.
Animals infected with the virus under New York wastewater
The virus found in New York City sewers may have come from rats and dogs, according to a preprint of the study published by researchers July 29. Most of the mutations were found in three different wastewater treatment plants over a span of several months. This means that the animals infected with the virus lived in or near the sewers and that their animal populations were large enough to sustain an outbreak for at least six months.
The most likely culprits are rats and dogs. Rats in particular are known carriers of the disease and have long been a scourge of the city. The epidemic has also had a huge impact on them. The lack of food also led to a decline in the rat population, with millions of rats dying in New York throughout the epidemic.
However, rat populations in some areas have now surpassed pre-epidemic levels. In New York City, 311 complaints about rats declined during the epidemic but exploded again as the city reopened. If researchers find an outbreak of the COVID virus in New York City rats, they are not the first animals to be infected with the virus.
New York City officials are lukewarm on negative outbreak prevention
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) noted that dogs, cats and even a tiger in New York City have been reported to be infected with the virus. While transmission of the virus between animals and people is extremely rare, there have been instances of mink-to-human transmission in the United States.
The researchers said that when they presented their findings to New York City officials, the response was rather lukewarm. They were told they could investigate further, but the city's Department of Environmental Protection initially did not commit to providing additional funding or support.
U.S. Omicron predates South Africa
The unique resistance of the virus in New York's wastewater combined with the negative attitude of government officials toward prevention of the epidemic, all indications could be that someone in New York City may have contracted the Omicron variant as early as Nov. 21.
This was four days before scientists in South Africa first announced a case of the variant and ten days before the first case was reported in the United States. Researchers in California and Texas also found evidence of omicron in wastewater samples in late November. Apparently, the U.S. reported or underreported their first case of omicron late.