Vol.:(0123456789) 1 3 Food and Environmental Virology https://doi.org/10.1007/s12560-020-09423-3 ORIGINAL PAPER Gastroenteric Viruses Detection in a Drinking Water Distribution‑to‑Consumption System in a Low‑Income Community in Rio de Janeiro Marize Pereira Miagostovich 1  · Mônica Simões Rocha 1  · Fabiane Bertoni dos Reis 2  · Marcelo Santos Sampaio 2  · Renata de Saldanha da Gama Gracie Carrijo 3  · Fabio Correia Malta 1  · Janaína Rodrigues 1  · Amanda Genuino 1  · Matheus Ribeiro da Silva Assis 1  · Tulio Machado Fumian 1  · Paulo Rubens Guimarães Barrocas 2 Received: 18 November 2019 / Accepted: 28 February 2020 © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020 Abstract The availability of drinking water is one of the main determinants of quality of life, disease prevention and the promotion of health. Viruses are important agents of waterborne diseases and have been described as important markers of human faecal contamination. This study aimed to investigate viruses’ presence as an indicator of drinking water quality in low-income communities in the Manguinhos area, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Three hundred and four drinking water samples (2L/each) were collected along the drinking water distribution-to-consumption pathway in households, as well as healthcare and school units. Water samples were collected both directly from the water supply prior to distribution and after storage in tanks and fltra- tion units. Using qPCR, viruses were detected 50 times in 45 water samples (15%), 19 of these being human adenovirus, 17 rotavirus A and 14 norovirus GII. Viral loads recovered ranged from 5E+10 to 8.7E+10 6 genome copies/Liter. Co-detection was observed in fve household water samples and there was no diference regarding virus detection across sampling sites. Precarious and inadequate environmental conditions characterized by the lack of local infrastructure regarding basic sanita- tion and waste collection in the territory, as well as negligent hygiene habits, could explain viral detection in drinking water in regions with a water supply system. Keywords Gastroenteric viruses · Drinking water · Rio de Janeiro Introduction Poor water quality continues to pose a threat to human health, especially in low-income countries, where a con- siderable part of the population still lives with scarce or inadequate water supplies, associated with poor sanitation conditions. According to the World Health Organization, 785 million individuals lack access to improved drink- ing water, at least 2 billion lack improved sanitation, and 842,000 people die each year from diarrhoea due to unsafe drinking water, as well as lack of adequate sanitation and hygiene (WHO 2019). Water quality monitoring is an important strategy for the protection of human health, being an integral part of Health Surveillance Programs worldwide, following recommenda- tions from the World Health Organization (WHO 2011). Despite eforts to improve water quality worldwide, out- breaks of drinking water-related diseases as well as the dif- fculties in measuring their burden are known (WHO 2011; Marize Pereira Miagostovich and Mônica Simões Rocha have contributed equally to the manuscript. * Marize Pereira Miagostovich marizepm@ioc.focruz.br * Mônica Simões Rocha mosrocha@ioc.focruz.br 1 Laboratório de Virologia Comparada e Ambiental, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ 21045-900, Brazil 2 Departamento de Saneamento e Saúde Ambiental, Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública Sérgio Arouca, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ 21045-900, Brazil 3 Núcleo de Geoprocessamento do Laboratório de Informações em Saúde do, ICICT/Fiocruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil