From Entry to Outbreak in a High School Setting: Clinical and Wastewater Surveillance of a Rare SARS-CoV-2 Variant
In December 2021, an outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.640.2 variant, potentially originating from Cameroon, was investigated among schoolchildren in Germany. The index case, an adult who had recently returned from a three-week stay in the Republic of Congo, introduced the variant into a school setting...
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MDPI AG
2025-03-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/17/4/477 |
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| author | Sven Sachse Ivana Kraiselburd Olympia Evdoxia Anastasiou Carina Elsner Sarah Christina Goretzki Stefan Goer Michael Koldehoff Alexander Thomas Jens Schoth Sebastian Voigt Rudolf Stephan Roß Ulf Dittmer Folker Meyer Ricarda Maria Schmithausen |
| author_facet | Sven Sachse Ivana Kraiselburd Olympia Evdoxia Anastasiou Carina Elsner Sarah Christina Goretzki Stefan Goer Michael Koldehoff Alexander Thomas Jens Schoth Sebastian Voigt Rudolf Stephan Roß Ulf Dittmer Folker Meyer Ricarda Maria Schmithausen |
| author_sort | Sven Sachse |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In December 2021, an outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.640.2 variant, potentially originating from Cameroon, was investigated among schoolchildren in Germany. The index case, an adult who had recently returned from a three-week stay in the Republic of Congo, introduced the variant into a school setting via their children, resulting in subsequent transmission within the school and ultimately to a hospital ward. Whole-genome sequencing of viral samples identified both B.1.640.1 and B.1.640.2 lineages. This outbreak highlights the unpredictable nature of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants and emphasizes the importance of early detection and containment to mitigate transmission to high-risk populations. Notably, wastewater surveillance detected the variant during the study peri-od, reinforcing the utility of wastewater-based epidemiology as a complementary tool for the early warning and containment of novel variants. These findings underline the critical need for timely research and adherence to quarantine measures to enhance outbreak control efforts. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-404129c297e84c2883f7cb50fae89a0d |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1999-4915 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Viruses |
| spelling | doaj-art-404129c297e84c2883f7cb50fae89a0d2025-08-20T02:25:07ZengMDPI AGViruses1999-49152025-03-0117447710.3390/v17040477From Entry to Outbreak in a High School Setting: Clinical and Wastewater Surveillance of a Rare SARS-CoV-2 VariantSven Sachse0Ivana Kraiselburd1Olympia Evdoxia Anastasiou2Carina Elsner3Sarah Christina Goretzki4Stefan Goer5Michael Koldehoff6Alexander Thomas7Jens Schoth8Sebastian Voigt9Rudolf Stephan Roß10Ulf Dittmer11Folker Meyer12Ricarda Maria Schmithausen13Institute for Artificial Intelligence (IKIM), University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45131 Essen, GermanyInstitute for Artificial Intelligence (IKIM), University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45131 Essen, GermanyInstitute of Virology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, GermanyInstitute of Virology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, GermanyDepartment of Pediatrics I, Neonatology, Pediatric Intensive Care, Pediatric Infectiology, Pediatric Neurology, University Hospital Essen, University Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, GermanyDepartment of Hygiene and Environmental Medicine, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, GermanyDepartment of Hygiene and Environmental Medicine, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, GermanyInstitute for Artificial Intelligence (IKIM), University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45131 Essen, GermanyEmschergenossenschaft Lippeverband (EGLV), 45128 Essen, GermanyInstitute of Virology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, GermanyInstitute of Virology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, GermanyInstitute of Virology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, GermanyInstitute for Artificial Intelligence (IKIM), University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45131 Essen, GermanyInstitute for Artificial Intelligence (IKIM), University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45131 Essen, GermanyIn December 2021, an outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.640.2 variant, potentially originating from Cameroon, was investigated among schoolchildren in Germany. The index case, an adult who had recently returned from a three-week stay in the Republic of Congo, introduced the variant into a school setting via their children, resulting in subsequent transmission within the school and ultimately to a hospital ward. Whole-genome sequencing of viral samples identified both B.1.640.1 and B.1.640.2 lineages. This outbreak highlights the unpredictable nature of emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants and emphasizes the importance of early detection and containment to mitigate transmission to high-risk populations. Notably, wastewater surveillance detected the variant during the study peri-od, reinforcing the utility of wastewater-based epidemiology as a complementary tool for the early warning and containment of novel variants. These findings underline the critical need for timely research and adherence to quarantine measures to enhance outbreak control efforts.https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/17/4/477SARS-CoV-2outbreak investigationwastewater |
| spellingShingle | Sven Sachse Ivana Kraiselburd Olympia Evdoxia Anastasiou Carina Elsner Sarah Christina Goretzki Stefan Goer Michael Koldehoff Alexander Thomas Jens Schoth Sebastian Voigt Rudolf Stephan Roß Ulf Dittmer Folker Meyer Ricarda Maria Schmithausen From Entry to Outbreak in a High School Setting: Clinical and Wastewater Surveillance of a Rare SARS-CoV-2 Variant Viruses SARS-CoV-2 outbreak investigation wastewater |
| title | From Entry to Outbreak in a High School Setting: Clinical and Wastewater Surveillance of a Rare SARS-CoV-2 Variant |
| title_full | From Entry to Outbreak in a High School Setting: Clinical and Wastewater Surveillance of a Rare SARS-CoV-2 Variant |
| title_fullStr | From Entry to Outbreak in a High School Setting: Clinical and Wastewater Surveillance of a Rare SARS-CoV-2 Variant |
| title_full_unstemmed | From Entry to Outbreak in a High School Setting: Clinical and Wastewater Surveillance of a Rare SARS-CoV-2 Variant |
| title_short | From Entry to Outbreak in a High School Setting: Clinical and Wastewater Surveillance of a Rare SARS-CoV-2 Variant |
| title_sort | from entry to outbreak in a high school setting clinical and wastewater surveillance of a rare sars cov 2 variant |
| topic | SARS-CoV-2 outbreak investigation wastewater |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/17/4/477 |
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