Large, but short-term, increase in fecal indicator bacteria following extreme flooding from Hurricane Harvey in Houston, TX
Hurricane Harvey caused widespread flooding along the Texas Gulf Coast in August 2017; some areas of Houston received >150 cm of rainfall within a few days. Due to concerns over fecal contamination of floodwaters, surface water samples were collected at six locations in the southeastern Houst...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2024-11-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frwa.2024.1466377/full |
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| author | Maitreyee Mukherjee Md Shakhawat Hossain John Boswell Yan Zhang Michael S. Allen Michael G. LaMontagne Terry J. Gentry |
| author_facet | Maitreyee Mukherjee Md Shakhawat Hossain John Boswell Yan Zhang Michael S. Allen Michael G. LaMontagne Terry J. Gentry |
| author_sort | Maitreyee Mukherjee |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Hurricane Harvey caused widespread flooding along the Texas Gulf Coast in August 2017; some areas of Houston received >150 cm of rainfall within a few days. Due to concerns over fecal contamination of floodwaters, surface water samples were collected at six locations in the southeastern Houston area immediately before and after the hurricane and then every 1 to 2 weeks thereafter over a 2-month period. Total E. coli was enumerated using the IDEXX Quanti-Tray/2000 system. DNA extracted from water samples was analyzed via quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) for general and source-specific total Bacteroidales and human Bacteroidales markers, and digital PCR (dPCR) for antibiotic resistance genes (ARG) and a plasmid (pBI143) associated with human waste. SourceTracker2 was used to determine human source contributions based on metagenomic analysis of PCR-amplified 16S rRNA gene fragments. Samples collected immediately after the hurricane had elevated levels of E. coli, ranging from 488 to 1,733 CFU 100 ml−1. After 1 week, E. coli levels decreased to <100 MPN 100 ml−1. Total Bacteroidales numbers were elevated immediately following the hurricane and remained high for 12 days. Human-source contributions, as assessed by PCR methods and metagenomic analysis, peaked within 12 days after the hurricane consistently across all sampling sites. Multiple regression analysis of environmental parameters, copies of ARG and pBI143, and metagenomic data confirmed that human waste caused the dramatic, short-term, high levels of fecal contamination of floodwaters generated by Hurricane Harvey. Fecal indicators approached normal background levels approximately 3 weeks after the rainfall ended. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-dd7e1a15d8e2483c9df07869e6a700a9 |
| institution | Kabale University |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Water |
| spelling | doaj-art-dd7e1a15d8e2483c9df07869e6a700a92024-11-12T06:15:31ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Water2624-93752024-11-01610.3389/frwa.2024.14663771466377Large, but short-term, increase in fecal indicator bacteria following extreme flooding from Hurricane Harvey in Houston, TXMaitreyee Mukherjee0Md Shakhawat Hossain1John Boswell2Yan Zhang3Michael S. Allen4Michael G. LaMontagne5Terry J. Gentry6Department of Biology, Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, MI, United StatesDivision of Research, Innovation, and Economic Development, Tarleton State University, Stephenville, TX, United StatesDepartment of Soil and Crop Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United StatesDepartment of Microbiology, Immunology and Genetics, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX, United StatesDepartment of Microbiology, Immunology and Genetics, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, TX, United StatesDepartment of Biology and Biotechnology, University of Houston—Clear Lake, Houston, TX, United StatesDepartment of Soil and Crop Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United StatesHurricane Harvey caused widespread flooding along the Texas Gulf Coast in August 2017; some areas of Houston received >150 cm of rainfall within a few days. Due to concerns over fecal contamination of floodwaters, surface water samples were collected at six locations in the southeastern Houston area immediately before and after the hurricane and then every 1 to 2 weeks thereafter over a 2-month period. Total E. coli was enumerated using the IDEXX Quanti-Tray/2000 system. DNA extracted from water samples was analyzed via quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) for general and source-specific total Bacteroidales and human Bacteroidales markers, and digital PCR (dPCR) for antibiotic resistance genes (ARG) and a plasmid (pBI143) associated with human waste. SourceTracker2 was used to determine human source contributions based on metagenomic analysis of PCR-amplified 16S rRNA gene fragments. Samples collected immediately after the hurricane had elevated levels of E. coli, ranging from 488 to 1,733 CFU 100 ml−1. After 1 week, E. coli levels decreased to <100 MPN 100 ml−1. Total Bacteroidales numbers were elevated immediately following the hurricane and remained high for 12 days. Human-source contributions, as assessed by PCR methods and metagenomic analysis, peaked within 12 days after the hurricane consistently across all sampling sites. Multiple regression analysis of environmental parameters, copies of ARG and pBI143, and metagenomic data confirmed that human waste caused the dramatic, short-term, high levels of fecal contamination of floodwaters generated by Hurricane Harvey. Fecal indicators approached normal background levels approximately 3 weeks after the rainfall ended.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frwa.2024.1466377/fullE. colifecal indicator bacteriacoliformhurricaneHarveyNMDS |
| spellingShingle | Maitreyee Mukherjee Md Shakhawat Hossain John Boswell Yan Zhang Michael S. Allen Michael G. LaMontagne Terry J. Gentry Large, but short-term, increase in fecal indicator bacteria following extreme flooding from Hurricane Harvey in Houston, TX Frontiers in Water E. coli fecal indicator bacteria coliform hurricane Harvey NMDS |
| title | Large, but short-term, increase in fecal indicator bacteria following extreme flooding from Hurricane Harvey in Houston, TX |
| title_full | Large, but short-term, increase in fecal indicator bacteria following extreme flooding from Hurricane Harvey in Houston, TX |
| title_fullStr | Large, but short-term, increase in fecal indicator bacteria following extreme flooding from Hurricane Harvey in Houston, TX |
| title_full_unstemmed | Large, but short-term, increase in fecal indicator bacteria following extreme flooding from Hurricane Harvey in Houston, TX |
| title_short | Large, but short-term, increase in fecal indicator bacteria following extreme flooding from Hurricane Harvey in Houston, TX |
| title_sort | large but short term increase in fecal indicator bacteria following extreme flooding from hurricane harvey in houston tx |
| topic | E. coli fecal indicator bacteria coliform hurricane Harvey NMDS |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frwa.2024.1466377/full |
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