Human norovirus (HuNoV) is a pathogenic agent that is frequently associated with foodborne disease outbreaks linked to fresh produce. Within microgreen production systems, understanding of virus transmission routes and persistence is limited. To investigate virus persistence on microgreen leaf surfaces, this study mimicked virus contaminations caused during microgreen handling by farm workers or during overhead irrigation with contaminated water. Specifically, approximately 5 log PFU of Tulane virus (TV)—a HuNoV surrogate—was inoculated on sunflower (SF) and pea shoot (PS) microgreen leaves at 7-day age. The virus reduction on SF was significantly higher than PS (p < 0.05). On day 10, total TV reduction for SF and PS were 3.70 ± 0.10 and 2.52 ± 0.30 log PFU/plant, respectively. Under the environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM) observation, the leaf surfaces of SF were visually smoother than PS, while their specific effect on virus persistence were not further characterized. Overall, this study revealed that TV persistence on microgreen leaves was plant variety dependent. In addition, this study provided a preliminary estimation on the risk of HuNoV contamination in a microgreen production system which will aim the future development of prevention and control measures.

人类诺如病毒 (HuNoV) 是一种病原体，经常与新鲜农产品相关的食源性疾病暴发有关。在微型绿色生产系统中，对病毒传播途径和持久性的了解是有限的。为了调查病毒在微绿叶表面的持久性，本研究模拟了农场工人在处理微绿叶期间或在用受污染的水进行高架灌溉期间造成的病毒污染。具体而言，将大约 5 log PFU 的杜兰病毒 (TV)（一种 HuNoV 替代物）接种在 7 日龄的向日葵 (SF) 和豌豆芽 (PS) 微绿叶上。SF 上的病毒减少明显高于 PS (p < 0.05)。在第 10 天，SF 和 PS 的总 TV 减少分别为 3.70 ± 0.10 和 2.52 ± 0.30 log PFU/植物。在环境扫描电子显微镜（ESEM）观察下，SF 的叶表面在视觉上比 PS 更光滑，但其对病毒持久性的具体影响没有进一步表征。总的来说，这项研究表明，电视对微绿叶的持久性取决于植物品种。此外，本研究对微型绿色生产系统中 HuNoV 污染的风险进行了初步估计，这将有助于未来制定预防和控制措施。