A cluster of acute melioidosis cases occurred in a remote, coastal community in tropical
Western Australia. Molecular typing of Burkholderia pseudomallei isolates from culture-confirmed cases and suspected environmental sources by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis
(PFGE) of XbaI chromosomal DNA digests showed that a single PFGE type was responsible
for five cases of acute infection in a community of around 300 during a 5 week period. This
temporal and geographical clustering of acute melioidosis cases provided a unique opportunity
to investigate the environmental factors contributing to this disease. B. pseudomallei isolated
from a domestic tap at the home of an asymptomatic seroconverter was indistinguishable by
PFGE. Possible contributing environmental factors included an unusually acid communal water
supply, unrecordable chlorine levels during the probable exposure period, a nearby earth
tremor, and gusting winds during the installation of new water and electricity supplies. The
possible role of the potable water supply as a source of B. pseudomallei was investigated
further.
Environmental factors and predator abundance predict the distribution and occurrence of two sympatric urchin species at Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia
