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USE OF BACTEROIDES PCR-BASED METHODS TO EXAMINE FECAL CONTAMINATION SOURCES IN TROPICAL COASTAL WATERS
Citation:
BONKOSKY, M., M. RIVERA, O. C. SHANKS, C. A. KELTY, J. W. SANTO DOMINGO, AND L. CASILLAS-MARTINEZ. USE OF BACTEROIDES PCR-BASED METHODS TO EXAMINE FECAL CONTAMINATION SOURCES IN TROPICAL COASTAL WATERS. Presented at American Society for Microbiology Annual Meeting, Atlanta, GA, June 04 - 09, 2005.
Impact/Purpose:
To inform the public
Description:
Several library independent Microbial Source Tracking methods have been developed to rapidly determine the source of fecal contamination. Thus far, none of these methods have been tested in tropical marine waters. In this study, we used a Bacteroides 16S rDNA PCR-based method to test for the presence of specific groups of fecal contaminants. Assays specific for cow (CF), human (HF) and general Bacteroides-Provetella (GB) were used to screen water samples from four locations in Jobos Bay, Puerto Rico. PCR products of the expected size were obtained with the HF and GB assays from samples located approximately 100 meters off the coast. Sequence analysis of the products obtained with the HF primers demonstrated the presence bacteria closely related to Bacteroides associated with human feces. Considering that Bacteroides-like bacteria do not survive very long outside of the animal gut, these results suggest that nearby waters have been impacted by recent fecal contamination events. Since this bay receives discharges from septic tanks from a nearby community, the data from this study suggest that the primary source of fecal pollution is of human origin. The negative results obtained with the CF primers suggest that ruminants are not significantly impacting this coastal area.