Detection of Hepatovirus a in Two Tunisian Wastewater Treatment Plants

Hepatovirus A is known as a waterborne and foodborne virus that can be transferred from one individual to another through contaminated water and nutrients. A total of 242 wastewater were sampled at the scale of the two adopted Tunisian Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs), namely El Menzeh I and Charguia I. The main physico-chemical and the bacteriological parameters were tested for all collected wastewater samples. Hepatovirus A was detected using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The hepatovirus A detection rates increased from upstream to downstream of the natural oxidizing lagoons and at the exit of the rotating biodisks procedures. However, there is a moderate decrease of hepatovirus A frequencies from the first to last basins types of the activated sludge procedure and at the exit of the two successive passages by UV-C₂₅₄ monolamp prototype. The found data showed a poor virological quality of the treated wastewater by the adopted biological and tertiary wastewater treatment procedures. These findings corroborated the need for the UV-C254 treatment improvement in the two adopted wastewater treatment plants to upgrade the Tunisian virological quality.