Researchers are saying that while a new COVID-19 variant has been detected around the globe, it hasn't made an appearance in Nevada.
The Chief Genomics Officer with the Nevada State Health Laboratory, David Hess, says the process they complete can confirm if it is present or not.
“We do samples from wastewater treatment plants. And from there, we concentrate that you know, somewhat, unsavory fluid,” said Hess. “And, from there, we use molecular techniques where we amplify any DNA or RNA that's in that sample. And we are specifically looking for SARS-CoV-2.”
The data they gain from the testing is shared with the Southern Nevada Health District and the CDC. Then it’s compared to other wastewater testing across the nation.
“This allows us to get a nationwide level surveillance picture for SARS-CoV-2. And this is how we see strains sort of move east to west or west to east,” said Hess.
The CDC reports very low COVID activity in the U.S., but does see slightly higher activity in the Midwest region. Even then, the levels are still low.
There are seven testing centers across the Silver State, all reflecting low and very low levels as well.
“We have the ability to do sequencing from that to look for variants. We're not doing that at that time as we sequence clinical isolates. And that's how we tell what variants are circulating in Nevada,” said Hess.
Hess says COVID levels in Nevada are actually declining overall due to the cold and flu season coming to an end.
COVID-19 wastewater data from the CDC on Nevada can be found here: COVID-19 Wastewater Data – State & Territory Trends | NWSS | CDC.
Any respiratory illness data for northern Nevada can be found here: Microsoft Power BI
General COVID-19 data for the nation is available here: Surveillance and Data Analytics | Covid | CDC.
Hess also wanted to clarify with the public that the data gathered through wastewater testing does not violate a person’s privacy.
“There's no way to trace this back to homes or even a building,” said Hess. “We're looking from the main wastewater stream as it's coming to the wastewater treatment plant. So this is just very generic community-level surveillance.”
