Table of Contents — August 27, 2021, 373 (6558)

#Airborne transmission of respiratory viruses | Science
►http://science.sciencemag.org/content/373/6558/eabd9149.full

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The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed critical knowledge gaps in our understanding of and a need to update the traditional view of transmission pathways for respiratory viruses. The long-standing definitions of droplet and airborne transmission do not account for the mechanisms by which virus-laden respiratory droplets and aerosols travel through the air and lead to infection. In this Review, we discuss current evidence regarding the transmission of respiratory viruses by aerosols—how they are generated, transported, and deposited, as well as the factors affecting the relative contributions of droplet-spray deposition versus aerosol inhalation as modes of transmission. Improved understanding of aerosol transmission brought about by studies of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection requires a reevaluation of the major transmission pathways for other respiratory viruses, which will allow better-informed controls to reduce airborne transmission.

Airborne transmission of respiratory viruses | Science
►http://science.sciencemag.org/content/373/6558/eabd9149.full

https://science.sciencemag.org/content/373/6558/eabd9149/F1.large.jpg

Phases involved in airborne transmission of respiratory viruses.
Virus-laden aerosols (<100 I1/4m) are first generated by an infected individual through expiratory activities, through which they are exhaled and transported in the environment. They may be inhaled by a potential host to initiate a new infection, provided that they remain infectious. In contrast to droplets (>100 I1/4m), #aerosols can linger in air for hours and travel beyond 1 to 2 m from the infected individual who exhales them, causing new infections at both short and long ranges.