SARS-CoV-2 Detection in Wastewater using Droplet Digital PCR by Krista Wigginton

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, what was your primary role or field of research?

I’m an Associate Professor in the department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Within that, my core research focus has been virus detection and analysis of viral behavior/survival in drinking water and wastewater.

How severely has your region been impacted by the pandemic?

Severely. Michigan was hit hard in April, in that initial wave. Now [we] are in the middle of a second wave.

How did this wastewater project come about? Who seeded the idea and when?

I was on sabbatical at Stanford in the winter when COVID-19 started. This collaboration started there with a colleague, Prof. Ali Boehm. We submitted a proposal to NSF that built on my team’s previous research on coronaviruses in wastewater.

What was the primary goal? What did you hope to determine or achieve?

We hoped to characterize the spread of COVID-19 in the early days of the pandemic and develop valuable tools for public health officials. Initially, the project was focused on feasibility method development. Now, we have moved on to implementation across communities in California and in collaboration with wastewater treatment plants and public health officials.

What Bio-Rad ddPCR platforms did you use to perform your research?

I was familiar with Bio-Rad instruments and ddPCR through my work at the University of Michigan. For this particular project at Stanford, we purchased a new QX200 [Droplet Digital PCR System]. We have additional work underway at the University of Michigan where we area are also using the QX200 [Droplet Digital PCR System].

What was the scope of the project — for example, how many people were in the wastewater catchment area?

We’ve looked at more than 40 plants across the U.S., with a focus in California. We are presently sampling at three wastewater treatment plants in Michigan.

What were the key outcomes/findings from your project?

We have a robust method focused on measuring SARS-CoV-2 in primary solids. And we captured the dynamics of COVID-19 in Santa Clara County, CA., through the first weeks of the pandemic.

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