Use of Human Intestinal Enteroids to Evaluate Persistence of Infectious Human Norovirus in Seawater
Marion Desdouits, David Polo, Cécile Le Mennec, Sofia Strubbia, Xi‐Lei Zeng, Khalil Ettayebi, Robert L. Atmar, Mary K. Estes, Françoise S. Le Guyader
Abstract
H uman noroviruses are the major cause of viral gastroenteritis worldwide (1) and the most common cause of foodborne or waterborne outbreaks in Europe (2). Noroviruses spread through fecal-oral transmission, mainly person to person, but also spread through environmental contamination (1). Food and drinks can be contaminated by infected food handlers and, during production, by human sewage spillover (3). When grown in contaminated seawater, filterfeeding shellfish bioaccumulate human noroviruses in their tissues (2,4). Shellfish, especially those eaten raw, are among the main foods involved in foodborne epidemics (2,5).