Differences in the viability of murine norovirus in different aquatic locations.

Norovirus is detected from shellfish and environmental water more frequently in winter than in other seasons. However, there is no report regarding its viability in actual seawater in situ. We investigated the viability of murine norovirus strain 1 (MNV-1), a surrogate for human norovirus, in 2 types of aquatic locations, a seawater pool carrying oceanic water and inner bay carrying brackish water. Sterilized seawater was inoculated with MNV-1 and enclosed in dialysis tubes, which were placed at the 2 locations. MNV-1 exhibited higher level of viability in brackish than in oceanic water. Factors that influenced the viability of MNV-1 included salt concentration as well as temperature of the seawater. Therefore, based on our findings, coastal brackish water that is routinely used for harvesting or cleaning seafood at fishing ports may promote the viability of norovirus.
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