Mass Spectrometry in Wastewater-Based Epidemiology for the Determination of Small and Large Molecules as Biomarkers of Exposure: Toward a Global View of Environment and Human Health under the COVID-19 Outbreak

Yolanda Picó; Damià Barceló

doi:10.1021/acsomega.1c04362

Mass Spectrometry in Wastewater-Based Epidemiology for the Determination of Small and Large Molecules as Biomarkers of Exposure: Toward a Global View of Environment and Human Health under the COVID-19 Outbreak

ACS Omega. 2021 Nov 8;6(46):30865-30872. doi: 10.1021/acsomega.1c04362. eCollection 2021 Nov 23.

Authors

Yolanda Picó¹, Damià Barceló^{2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Environmental and Food Safety Research Group-University of Valencia (SAMA-UV), Desertification Research Centre (CIDE), Joint Center CSIC-University of Valencia-Generalitat Valenciana, Moncada Naquera Road km 4.3, 46113 Moncada, Valencia, Spain.
² Water and Soil Quality Research Group, Department of Environmental Chemistry, IDAEA-CSIC, C/Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034 Barcelona, Spain.
³ Catalan Institute for Water Research, ICRA - CERCA, Technological Park of the University of Girona, Emili Grahit 101, 17003 Girona, Spain.

Abstract

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) estimates collective consumption or exposure to chemicals or pathogens by monitoring the substances excreted in the population's wastewater. Advances in mass spectrometry (MS) and the application of some clinical diagnostic tools and proteomics to wastewater fingerprinting have been linked to the discovery of new biomarkers and indicators of population health and are broadening the scope of WBE that nowadays cover not only small molecule biomarkers but also genetic biomarkers, large molecules, viruses, infection diseases, resistance, etc. This mini-review highlights recent WBE advances using MS and how this progress can create a fingerprint of a city's health hazards, habits, and lifestyle, which is gaining in public health emphasis.

Publication types

Review