#COVID19 Preprint Journal Club: “Implementing a Negative Pressure Isolation Space within a Skilled Nursing Facility to Control SARS-CoV-2 Transmission”

Another useful preprint by Shelly Miller at CU Boulder and colleagues.  In this case, “Implementing a Negative Pressure Isolation Space within a Skilled Nursing Facility to Control SARS-CoV-2 Transmission” is exactly what the title says.  A demonstration of modifying an existing HVAC system to control the flow of air in a high risk environment.  Good …

Story Behind the Paper: Draft genomes from JPL spacecraft… assembled by undergraduates

Just a quick post here that our paper just came out, “Draft Genome Sequences of Bacillus glennii V44-8, Bacillus saganii V47-23a, Bacillus sp. Strain V59.32b, Bacillus sp. Strain MER_TA_151, and Paenibacillus sp. Strain MER_111, Isolated from Cleanrooms Where the Viking and Mars Exploration Rover Spacecraft Were Assembled“.  This describes the genomes of a couple new …

#COVID19 Preprint Journal Club: “Detection and Survival of SARS-coronavirus in Human Stool, Urine, Wastewater and Sludge”

(h/t to Heather Bischel for the link) Yet another really nice and comprehensive review of the state of things regarding wastewater sampling for SARS-CoV-2.  “Detection and Survival of SARS-coronavirus in Human Stool, Urine, Wastewater and Sludge“.  This paper does a particularly nice job of looking at the following three questions: 1)What is the evidence for …

#COVID19 Preprint Journal Club; “Identification of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in Healthcare Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Units”

This one from our collaborators at the University of Oregon, “Identification of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in Healthcare Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Units“.  In this work they swabbed a bunch of locations on various air handlers in a healthcare setting and looked for SARS-CoV-2… finding it in about 25% of swabs.  Most potentially worrying is the …

#COVID19 Journal Club: “Wastewater-Based Epidemiology: Global Collaborative to Maximize Contributions in the Fight Against COVID-19”

This is less of an article than an announcement of a global collaboration and website for wastewater sampling for SARS-CoV-2.  “Wastewater-Based Epidemiology: Global Collaborative to Maximize Contributions in the Fight Against COVID-19“.  This is a non peer-reviewed opinion piece that summarizes the current state of knowledge on wastewater testing for SARS-CoV-2 and describes their COVID-19 …

#COVID19; Of fomites and nosocomial infections

(h/t to Jonathan Eisen for the original article) Virtually all the discussion these days is about aerosol/airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2, and probably rightly so… there’s a lot of evidence that these are the primary routes of transmission.   But as a recent Medscape article admonishes; “Don’t Forget the Fomites as Face-to-Face Care Ramps Up“.  It’s still …

Journal Club: “Initial Mapping of the New York City Wastewater Virome”

While not about COVID19 directly, this paper “Initial Mapping of the New York City Wastewater Virome” has implications for the many many folks looking at SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater these days.  This work is looking at all the viruses in the wastewater system and is one of relatively few metagenomic studies out there that focuses on …

#COVID19 Journal Club: “Recognizing and controlling airborne transmission of SARS‐CoV‐2 in indoor environments”

This is a nice and clear (and short) editorial by Joseph Allen and Linsey Marr; “Recognizing and controlling airborne transmission of SARS‐CoV‐2 in indoor environments“.  Basically they summarize the evidence for airborne transmission and suggest some mitigation strategies.  Definitely worth a read.  Abstract below: Sharing indoor space has been confirmed as a major risk factor …

#COVID19 Preprint Journal Club “Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 by inhalation of respiratory aerosol in the Skagit Valley Chorale superspreading event”

Another paper highlighting the importance of the aerosols in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.  This one is by a number of awesome folks in the field including Shelly Miller and Linsey Marr who have been some of the leading voices in understanding the airborne/aerosol transmission of SARS-CoV-2.  Most people have probably heard of “that choir event …