Full metadata
Title
Influence of Sampling Frequency on Wastewater-based Public Health Assessments of Opioid Consumption and SARS-CoV-2 Infections
Description
Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) has emerged as a powerful tool for community health assessment, using wastewater-borne biological and chemical markers as analytical targets. This study investigates the critical influence of sampling frequency on the resultant estimates of opioid consumption and the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infections at the neighborhood level using common WBE biomarkers including fentanyl, norfentanyl, and the SARS-CoV-2 N1 gene as targets. The goal was to assess sampling methodologies that include the impact of the day of the week and of the sampling frequency. Wastewater samples were collected two or three times per week over the course of five months (n=525) and analyzed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) or reverse transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) for target chemical or molecular indicators of interest. Results showed no statistically significant differences for days of the week (i.e., Tuesday vs. Thursday vs. Saturday) for 24-hour composite samples analyzed for fentanyl or SARS-CoV-2; however, concentrations of the human metabolite of fentanyl, norfentanyl, were statistically different between Tuesday and Saturday (p < 0.05). When data were aggregated either by Tuesday/Thursday or Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday to examine sensitivity to sampling frequency, data were not statistically different except for the Tuesday/Thursday weekly average and Saturday for norfentanyl (p < 0.05). These results highlight how sample collection and data handling methodologies can impact wastewater-derived public health assessments. Care should be taken when selecting an approach to the sampling frequency based on the public health concerns under investigation.
Date Created
2023
Contributors
- AJDINI, ARIANNA (Author)
- Halden, Rolf (Thesis advisor)
- Driver, Erin (Committee member)
- Conroy-Ben, Otakuye (Committee member)
- Arizona State University (Publisher)
Topical Subject
Resource Type
Extent
25 pages
Language
eng
Copyright Statement
In Copyright
Primary Member of
Peer-reviewed
No
Open Access
No
Handle
https://hdl.handle.net/2286/R.2.N.190962
Level of coding
minimal
Cataloging Standards
Note
Partial requirement for: M.S., Arizona State University, 2023
Field of study: Molecular and Cellular Biology
System Created
- 2023-12-14 01:59:38
System Modified
- 2023-12-14 01:59:44
- 10 months 3 weeks ago
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