COVID-19 genome surveillance at international airport quarantine stations in Japan

Tsuyoshi Sekizuka; Kentaro Itokawa; Koji Yatsu; Rina Tanaka; Masanori Hashino; Tetsuro Kawano-Sugaya; Makoto Ohnishi; Takaji Wakita; Makoto Kuroda; COVID-19 Genomic Surveillance Network in Japanese Airport Quarantine

doi:10.1093/jtm/taaa217

COVID-19 genome surveillance at international airport quarantine stations in Japan

J Travel Med. 2021 Feb 23;28(2):taaa217. doi: 10.1093/jtm/taaa217.

Authors

Tsuyoshi Sekizuka¹, Kentaro Itokawa¹, Koji Yatsu¹, Rina Tanaka¹, Masanori Hashino¹, Tetsuro Kawano-Sugaya¹, Makoto Ohnishi², Takaji Wakita², Makoto Kuroda¹; COVID-19 Genomic Surveillance Network in Japanese Airport Quarantine

Affiliations

¹ Pathogen Genomics Center, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, 1-23-1 Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8640, Japan.
² National Institute of Infectious Diseases, 1-23-1 Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8640, Japan.

Abstract

A coronavirus disease (COVID-19) genome surveillance has been conducted at four international airports in Japan, revealing a potential imported COVID-19 risk from multiple countries. The quarantine surveillance based on genome sequencing can enhance sequencing efforts worldwide, as returning travelers may serve as excellent sentinels for the global pandemic.

Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; air travel; airports; genomic; sentinel surveillance; sequencing.

MeSH terms

Air Travel / statistics & numerical data
Airports / organization & administration*
COVID-19 / diagnosis*
COVID-19 / epidemiology
COVID-19 / transmission
Humans
Japan / epidemiology
Quarantine
SARS-CoV-2
Whole Genome Sequencing / statistics & numerical data*