American Society for Microbiology, mSystems, 5(5), 2020
DOI: 10.1128/msystems.00771-20
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The ongoing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) (the virus responsible for coronavirus disease 2019 [COVID-19]) pandemic has led to a global slowdown with far-reaching financial and social impacts. The SARS-CoV-2 respiratory virus is primarily transmitted from person to person through inhalation of infected droplets or aerosols. However, some studies have shown that virions can remain infectious on surfaces for days and can lead to human infection from contact with infected surfaces. Thus, a comprehensive study was conducted to determine the efficiency of protocols to recover SARS-CoV-2 from surfaces in built environments. This end-to-end study showed that the effective combination for monitoring SARS-CoV-2 on surfaces required a minimum of 1,000 viral particles per 25 cm 2 to successfully detect virus from surfaces. This comprehensive study can provide valuable information regarding surface monitoring of various materials as well as the capacity to retain viral RNA and allow for effective disinfection.