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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 9, 2026

EPA Method 1615. Measurement of Enterovirus and Norovirus Occurrence in Water by Culture and RT-qPCR. II. Total Culturable Virus Assay

EPA Method 1615. Measurement of Enterovirus and Norovirus Occurrence in Water by Culture and RT-qPCR. II. Total Culturable Virus Assay

Published on: September 11, 2016

Volatile solids outperform pepper mild mottle virus as a normalizing parameter in wastewater-based epidemiology: a

Hassan Waseem¹, Lena Carolin Bitter¹, Timothy Garant¹

¹Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, ON K1S5B6, Canada.

Journal of Applied Microbiology

|May 7, 2026

Summary

Volatile solids (VS) offer a more stable and reliable normalization marker for wastewater-based epidemiology than Pepper Mild Mottle Virus (PMMoV). VS measurements correlate better with population size, improving wastewater monitoring accuracy.

Keywords:

PMMoV WBE biomarker normalization volatile solids wastewater surveillance

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Last Updated: May 9, 2026

EPA Method 1615. Measurement of Enterovirus and Norovirus Occurrence in Water by Culture and RT-qPCR. II. Total Culturable Virus Assay

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Published on: September 11, 2016

EPA Method 1615. Measurement of Enterovirus and Norovirus Occurrence in Water by Culture and RT-qPCR. I. Collection of Virus Samples

EPA Method 1615. Measurement of Enterovirus and Norovirus Occurrence in Water by Culture and RT-qPCR. I. Collection of Virus Samples

Published on: March 28, 2015

EPA Method 1615. Measurement of Enterovirus and Norovirus Occurrence in Water by Culture and RT-qPCR. Part III. Virus Detection by RT-qPCR

EPA Method 1615. Measurement of Enterovirus and Norovirus Occurrence in Water by Culture and RT-qPCR. Part III. Virus Detection by RT-qPCR

Published on: January 16, 2016

Area of Science:

Environmental Science
Public Health
Analytical Chemistry

Background:

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) relies on normalization to adjust for population and dilution variations.
Pepper Mild Mottle Virus (PMMoV) is a common viral marker for normalization, but its stability is inconsistent across different locations.
The effectiveness of PMMoV as a normalization marker can be influenced by factors like wastewater pH.

Purpose of the Study:

To evaluate volatile solids (VS) as an alternative normalization marker in WBE.
To compare the stability and population correlation of VS against PMMoV over multiple years and sites.
To assess the practicality of using routine physicochemical parameters for WBE normalization.

Main Methods:

Analysis of 1,611 wastewater samples from five diverse locations over three years.
Measurement of Pepper Mild Mottle Virus (PMMoV) and volatile solids (VS) concentrations.
Statistical comparison of temporal stability, variability, and correlation with population size for both markers.

Main Results:

Volatile solids (VS) demonstrated significantly lower variability (CV 0.11-0.18) compared to PMMoV (CV 0.30-0.52).
VS concentrations were stable (<6-fold variation) and strongly correlated with population size (R² = 0.721, p = 0.044).
PMMoV showed high fluctuations (up to 100-fold), year-wise decline, no significant population correlation (R² = 0.054, p = 0.706), and negative correlation with wastewater pH.

Conclusions:

Volatile solids (VS) are a more consistent and reliable normalization parameter than PMMoV for WBE in similar sewersheds.
VS can be practically implemented due to simple, cost-effective measurement and independence from dietary factors.
Routine physicochemical parameters like VS offer a robust alternative for wastewater-based epidemiology normalization.