Spatiotemporal Assessment of Pathogenic in Subtropical Coastal Watersheds

Overview

Journal J Water Health

Specialties Environmental Health
Public Health

Date 2024 Jun 1

PMID 38822470

Authors

Ronell Bridgemohan

Matthew J Deitch

Emily Harmon

Matt R Whiles

P Christopher Wilson

Eban Bean

Puran Bridgemohan

Joseph H Bisesi

Jodel Nicholas

Aaden Redhead

Dave S Bachoon

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The World Health Organization classifies leptospirosis as a significant public health concern, predominantly affecting impoverished and unsanitary regions. By using the Pensacola Bay System as a case study, this study examines the underappreciated susceptibility of developed subtropical coastal ecosystems such as the Pensacola Bay System to neglected zoonotic pathogens such as . We analyzed 132 water samples collected over 12 months from 44 distinct locations with high levels of (>410 most probable number/100 mL). Fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) concentrations were assessed using IDEXX Colilert-18 and Enterolert-18, and an analysis of water physiochemical characteristics and rainfall intensity was conducted. The gene was used as a quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) indicator to identify the distribution of . The results revealed 12 instances of the presence of at sites with high FIB over various land cover and aquatic ecosystem types. Independent of specific rainfall events, a seasonal relationship between precipitation and elevated rates of fecal bacteria and leptospirosis was found. These findings highlight qPCR's utility in identifying pathogens in aquatic environments and the widespread conditions where it can be found in natural and developed areas.

References

Ahmed W, Payyappat S, Cassidy M, Harrison N, Besley C . Sewage-associated marker genes illustrate the impact of wet weather overflows and dry weather leakage in urban estuarine waters of Sydney, Australia. Sci Total Environ. 2019; 705:135390. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135390. View

Bachoon D, Miller C, Green C, Otero E . Comparison of four polymerase chain reaction methods for the rapid detection of human fecal pollution in marine and inland waters. Int J Microbiol. 2010; 2010. PMC: 2929603. DOI: 10.1155/2010/595692. View

Bharti A, Nally J, Ricaldi J, Matthias M, Diaz M, Lovett M . Leptospirosis: a zoonotic disease of global importance. Lancet Infect Dis. 2003; 3(12):757-71. DOI: 10.1016/s1473-3099(03)00830-2. View

Bierque E, Thibeaux R, Girault D, Soupe-Gilbert M, Goarant C . A systematic review of Leptospira in water and soil environments. PLoS One. 2020; 15(1):e0227055. PMC: 6984726. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0227055. View

Casanovas-Massana A, Pedra G, Wunder Jr E, Diggle P, Begon M, Ko A . Quantification of Leptospira interrogans Survival in Soil and Water Microcosms. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2018; 84(13). PMC: 6007094. DOI: 10.1128/AEM.00507-18. View

Dang H, Lovell C . Microbial Surface Colonization and Biofilm Development in Marine Environments. Microbiol Mol Biol Rev. 2015; 80(1):91-138. PMC: 4711185. DOI: 10.1128/MMBR.00037-15. View

Deitch M, Gancel H, Croteau A, Caffrey J, Scheffel W, Underwood B . Adaptive management as a foundational framework for developing collaborative estuary management programs. J Environ Manage. 2021; 295:113107. DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.113107. View

Desai S, van Treeck U, Lierz M, Espelage W, Zota L, Sarbu A . Resurgence of field fever in a temperate country: an epidemic of leptospirosis among seasonal strawberry harvesters in Germany in 2007. Clin Infect Dis. 2009; 48(6):691-7. DOI: 10.1086/597036. View

Desvars A, Jego S, Chiroleu F, Bourhy P, Cardinale E, Michault A . Seasonality of human leptospirosis in Reunion Island (Indian Ocean) and its association with meteorological data. PLoS One. 2011; 6(5):e20377. PMC: 3105052. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0020377. View

10.

Dhewantara P, Lau C, Allan K, Hu W, Zhang W, Mamun A . Spatial epidemiological approaches to inform leptospirosis surveillance and control: A systematic review and critical appraisal of methods. Zoonoses Public Health. 2018; 66(2):185-206. DOI: 10.1111/zph.12549. View

11.

Dobigny G, Garba M, Tatard C, Loiseau A, Galan M, Kadaoure I . Urban Market Gardening and Rodent-Borne Pathogenic Leptospira in Arid Zones: A Case Study in Niamey, Niger. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2015; 9(10):e0004097. PMC: 4593649. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004097. View

12.

Falkowski P, Fenchel T, DeLong E . The microbial engines that drive Earth's biogeochemical cycles. Science. 2008; 320(5879):1034-9. DOI: 10.1126/science.1153213. View

13.

Gaynor K, Katz A, Park S, Nakata M, Clark T, Effler P . Leptospirosis on Oahu: an outbreak associated with flooding of a university campus. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2007; 76(5):882-5. View

14.

Genthner F, James J, Yates D, Friedman S . Use of composite data sets for source-tracking enterococci in the water column and shoreline interstitial waters on Pensacola Beach, Florida. Mar Pollut Bull. 2005; 50(7):724-32. DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2005.02.026. View

15.

Goarant C . Leptospirosis: risk factors and management challenges in developing countries. Res Rep Trop Med. 2018; 7:49-62. PMC: 6028063. DOI: 10.2147/RRTM.S102543. View

16.

Gordon K, Brownell M, Wang S, Lepo J, Mott J, Nathaniel R . Relationship of human-associated microbial source tracking markers with Enterococci in Gulf of Mexico waters. Water Res. 2012; 47(3):996-1004. DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2012.10.032. View

17.

Govindan P, Pitchaikani S, Kandasamy S, Rajan M, Shakila H, Eed E . Biomacromolecules of chitosan - Bacopa saponin based LipL32 gene delivery system for leptospirosis therapy. Environ Res. 2021; 202:111699. DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.111699. View

18.

Guglielmini J, Bourhy P, Schiettekatte O, Zinini F, Brisse S, Picardeau M . Genus-wide Leptospira core genome multilocus sequence typing for strain taxonomy and global surveillance. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2019; 13(4):e0007374. PMC: 6513109. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0007374. View

19.

Hacker K, Sacramento G, Cruz J, de Oliveira D, Nery Jr N, Lindow J . Influence of Rainfall on Leptospira Infection and Disease in a Tropical Urban Setting, Brazil. Emerg Infect Dis. 2020; 26(2):311-314. PMC: 6986844. DOI: 10.3201/eid2602.190102. View

20.

Hagan J, Moraga P, Costa F, Capian N, Ribeiro G, Wunder Jr E . Spatiotemporal Determinants of Urban Leptospirosis Transmission: Four-Year Prospective Cohort Study of Slum Residents in Brazil. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2016; 10(1):e0004275. PMC: 4714915. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0004275. View