Understanding COVID-19 Situation in Nepal and Implications for SARS-CoV-2 Transmission and Management

CC BY-NC 4.0Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) present one of the greatest challenges to public health in the 21st century. An emerging virus, depending on its potential to spread among humans, may cause individual or sporadic cases, culminating in a localized outbreak requiring public health intervention, or, in the worst-case scenario, a widespread epidemic, or worldwide pandemic.1 The novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a new respiratory disease caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) that is causing worldwide public health and economic challenges and has been recognized as a pandemic by the World Health Organization.2 The virus was first reported in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, in December 2019.2,3 SARS-CoV-2 is an enveloped and positive single-stranded RNA virus belonging to the ß-coronavirus genus.2-4 SARS-CoV-2 holds high homology with SARS-CoV and targets angiotensin-converting enzyme receptor-2 (ACE2) for the viral attachment.4 A schematic depicting SARS-CoV-2 structure and pathogenesis is presented in Figure 1.5 There are very few studies on the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 through treated or untreated wastewater from advanced countries; however, COVID-19 surveillance of wastewater in developing countries has not been reported adequately.6 There is thus a need to study the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater in the developing countries like Nepal.OA publication support through Carolina Consortium agreement with Sag

Chemometrics in assessment of seasonal variation of water quality in fresh water systems

The chemometric techniques were applied for evaluation of the seasonal variation of water qualities at 17 stations along a stretch of the Bagmati river of Nepal for 23 water quality parameters measured during 1999-2003. The application of discriminant analysis confirmed the classification of the water quality measurements into three seasons: pre-monsoon, monsoon, and post-monsoon affording 93.8% correct classification. Factor analysis and box-whisker plots facilitated to investigate the seasonal variation of water quality and the pattern of pollution sources. Application of FA revealed that the influence of water quality parameters changes from season to season. A parameter that is most important in contributing to water quality variation for one season may not be important for another season. Comparison of the discriminant analysis and factor analysis helped to identify the most important water quality parameters, as water temperature, DO, EC, COD, CL, Ca, alkalinity, PO P, and TP, that are most important for seasonal variation and play a significant role in establishment of water quality control strategy

Understanding COVID-19 Situation in Nepal and Implications for SARS-CoV-2 Transmission and Management

Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) present one of the greatest challenges to public health in the 21st century. An emerging virus, depending on its potential to spread among humans, may cause individual or sporadic cases, culminating in a localized outbreak requiring public health intervention, or, in the worst-case scenario, a widespread epidemic, or worldwide pandemic.1 The novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a new respiratory disease caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) that is causing worldwide public health and economic challenges and has been recognized as a pandemic by the World Health Organization.2 The virus was first reported in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, in December 2019.2,3 SARS-CoV-2 is an enveloped and positive single-stranded RNA virus belonging to the ß-coronavirus genus.2-4 SARS-CoV-2 holds high homology with SARS-CoV and targets angiotensin-converting enzyme receptor-2 (ACE2) for the viral attachment.4 A schematic depicting SARS-CoV-2 structure and pathogenesis is presented in Figure 1.5 There are very few studies on the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 through treated or untreated wastewater from advanced countries\; however, COVID-19 surveillance of wastewater in developing countries has not been reported adequately.6 There is thus a need to study the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater in the developing countries like Nepal