The Influence of Temperature on Norovirus Inactivation by Monochloramine in Potable Waters: Testing with Murine Norovirus as a Surrogate for Human Norovirus

摘要

Human noroviral infections are generally more common during winters in temperate regions. This study used a murine norovirus (MNV) as a human norovirus surrogate to test the effect of water temperature (4 and 25 degrees C) on virus survival and its susceptibility to the levels of monochloramine (similar to 1.89 ppm) to terminally disinfect municipally treated potable waters. The titre of MNV remained essentially unchanged for at least 24 h in raw river water at both temperatures. The virus became undetectable in <2 h in monochloramine-containing samples held at 25 degrees C, but its titre remained virtually unaltered at 4 degrees C (P < 0.05) under the same conditions. These findings strongly suggest that water temperature can influence the norovirucidal activity of monochloramine and its possible impact on the seasonality of outbreaks of noroviral infections.