TY - JOUR
T1 - Intestinal Shedding of SARS-CoV-2 in Children
T2 - No Evidence for Infectious Potential
AU - Nogueira, Filomena
AU - Obrova, Klara
AU - Haas, Meryl
AU - Tucek, Evelyn
AU - Kosulin, Karin
AU - Fortschegger, Michaela
AU - Fürhacker, Paola
AU - Walter, Christina
AU - Größlinger, Lisa
AU - Peter, Susanne
AU - Hassan, Julia Othman
AU - Probst, Martin
AU - Salzer, Hans
AU - Lion, Thomas
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 by the authors.
PY - 2023/1
Y1 - 2023/1
N2 - The clinical courses of COVID-19 in children are often mild and may remain undiagnosed, but prolonged intestinal virus shedding has been documented, thus potentially enabling fecal-oral transmission. However, the infectious potential of SARS-CoV-2 viruses excreted with feces has remained unclear. Here, we investigated 247 stool specimens from 213 pediatric patients to assess the prevalence of intestinal SARS-CoV-2 shedding in hospitalized children without or with COVID-19 and determined the infectious capacity of stool-borne viruses. Upon RT-qPCR screening, the infectivity of virus-positive samples was tested in cell culture using the Vero-E6 permissive cell line. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected by RT-qPCR in 32 (13%) stool specimens, but the analysis of virus-positive samples in cell culture revealed no cytopathic effects attributable to SARS-CoV-2-related cell damage. Our findings do not support the notion of potential fecal-oral SARS-CoV-2 spreading, thus questioning the role of hygienic measures designed to prevent this mode of viral transmission.
AB - The clinical courses of COVID-19 in children are often mild and may remain undiagnosed, but prolonged intestinal virus shedding has been documented, thus potentially enabling fecal-oral transmission. However, the infectious potential of SARS-CoV-2 viruses excreted with feces has remained unclear. Here, we investigated 247 stool specimens from 213 pediatric patients to assess the prevalence of intestinal SARS-CoV-2 shedding in hospitalized children without or with COVID-19 and determined the infectious capacity of stool-borne viruses. Upon RT-qPCR screening, the infectivity of virus-positive samples was tested in cell culture using the Vero-E6 permissive cell line. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected by RT-qPCR in 32 (13%) stool specimens, but the analysis of virus-positive samples in cell culture revealed no cytopathic effects attributable to SARS-CoV-2-related cell damage. Our findings do not support the notion of potential fecal-oral SARS-CoV-2 spreading, thus questioning the role of hygienic measures designed to prevent this mode of viral transmission.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85146805036&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/microorganisms11010033
DO - 10.3390/microorganisms11010033
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 36677323
SN - 2076-2607
VL - 11
JO - Microorganisms
JF - Microorganisms
IS - 1
M1 - 33
ER -