Identification of Naegleria Fowleri in Warm Ground Water Aquifers

Abstract

The free-living amoeba Naegleria fowleri was identified as the etiological agent of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis that caused the deaths of two children in Peoria, Arizona, in autumn of 2002. It was suspected that the source of N. fowleri was the domestic water supply, which originates from ground water sources. In this study, ground water from the greater Phoenix Metropolitan area was tested for the presence of N. fowleri using a nested polymerase chain reaction approach. Phylogenetic analyses of 16S rRNA sequences of bacterial populations in the ground water were performed to examine the potential link between the presence of N. fowleri and bacterial groups inhabiting water wells. the results showed the presence of N. fowleri in five out of six wells sampled and in 26.6% of all ground water samples tested. Phylogenetic analyses showed that ß- and γ-proteobacteria were the dominant bacterial populations present in the ground water. Bacterial community analyses revealed a very diverse community structure in ground water samples testing positive for N. fowleri.

Department(s)

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering

Keywords and Phrases

16S rRNA Sequences; Arizona; Bacterial Community Analysis; Bacterial Population; Diverse Community; Domestic Water Supply; Etiological Agent; Nested Polymerase Chain Reaction; Phoenix Metropolitan; Phylogenetic Analysis; Proteobacteria; Aquifers; Bacteriology; Hydrogeology; Polymerase Chain Reaction; RNA; Water Supply; Water Wells; Groundwater Resources; Ground Water; Article; Betaproteobacteria; Controlled Study; Gammaproteobacteria; Meningoencephalitis; Microbial Community; Microbial Identification; Naegleria Fowleri; Nonhuman; Phylogeny; Polymerase Chain Reaction; RNA Sequence; United States; Water Supply; Animals; Arizona; Environmental Monitoring; Naegleria Fowleri; Phylogeny; Water; Water Microbiology; Water Supply; Bacteria (Microorganisms); Gammaproteobacteria; Naegleria Fowleri; Peoria

Geographic Coverage

Phoenix, Arizona

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

0047-2425

Electronic OCLC #

726780129

Print OCLC #

1800003

Document Type

Article - Journal

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 2010 Crop Society of America, Soil Science Society of America, American Society of Agronomy, All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Jan 2010

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