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Airborne COVID-19 Transmission Evidence

Scientists identified genetic markers of the novel coronavirus in airborne droplets smaller than one-ten-thousandth of an inch collected from two hospitals in Wuhan, China, providing evidence that the virus can spread through air. While it is unknown if the virus samples collected were infectious, droplets this small can remain suspended in the air for at least two hours and be inhaled by others, strongly suggesting the potential for airborne transmission. While the WHO has downplayed airborne transmission, mounting evidence and many scientists indicate the coronavirus can be spread through tiny aerosol droplets.

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6 views1 page

Airborne COVID-19 Transmission Evidence

Scientists identified genetic markers of the novel coronavirus in airborne droplets smaller than one-ten-thousandth of an inch collected from two hospitals in Wuhan, China, providing evidence that the virus can spread through air. While it is unknown if the virus samples collected were infectious, droplets this small can remain suspended in the air for at least two hours and be inhaled by others, strongly suggesting the potential for airborne transmission. While the WHO has downplayed airborne transmission, mounting evidence and many scientists indicate the coronavirus can be spread through tiny aerosol droplets.

Uploaded by

David Leviste
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
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Adding to growing evidence that the novel coronavirus can spread through air, scientists

have identified genetic markers of the virus in airborne droplets, many with diameters
smaller than one-ten-thousandth of an inch.
That had been previously demonstrated in laboratory experiments, but now Chinese
scientists studying real-world conditions report that they captured tiny droplets
containing the genetic markers of the virus from the air in two hospitals in Wuhan,
China, where the outbreak started.
Their findings were published Monday in the journal Nature.
It remains unknown if the virus in the samples they collected was infectious, but
droplets that small, which are expelled by breathing and talking, can remain aloft and be
inhaled by others.
“Those are going to stay in the air floating around for at least two hours,” said Linsey
Marr, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech who was not
involved with the Nature paper. “It strongly suggests that there is potential for airborne
transmission.”
Dr. Marr and many other scientists say evidence is mounting that the coronavirus is
being spread by tiny droplets known as aerosols. The World Health Organization has so
far downplayed the possibility, saying that the disease is mostly transmitted through
larger droplets that do not remain airborne for long, or through the touching of
contaminated surfaces.

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