Rapid Detection of Viral Contamination in Molluskan Shellfish (9601576)

Bivalve mollusks, such as oysters and clams, pose a high risk of causing viral gastroenteritis and hepatitis in consumers. This is because these shellfish come from sewage-polluted coastal waters, they efficiently concentrate viruses and other small particles during normal feeding activities, the accumulated viruses are persistent in the shellfish, and these shellfish are often eaten raw. Current bacterial indicators of the sanitary quality of the shellfish and their harvest waters are unreliable in predicting viral contamination. This project investigates and applies rapid new methods to detect viruses in shellfish. Two main approaches are used. One is the direct detection of disease-causing viruses by molecular biological methods based on amplification of their nucleic acid (hereditary material). The other is the detection of viruses of common intestinal bacteria, called coliphages, as indicators of fecal contamination and of human disease-causing viruses. Initially, two candidate methods for recovery and direct detection of disease-causing viruses in shellfish will be compared. Then the better of the two methods will be applied to the detection of viruses in field samples of shellfish. The same shellfish samples will be analyzed for coliphages and the coliphages will be further characterized in an effort to determine if they are from human or other animal sources. Field samples of shellfish are from sites impacted by well documented sources of human or animal fecal wastes. The predictability of the coliphages for human disease-causing viruses will be determined by statistical analysis of the field data.