scholarly journals Antibacterial Performance Evaluation of Silver Coated River Sand for Water Decontamination Application

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 214-221
Author(s):  
Rama Dubey ◽  
Swagata Goswami ◽  
Sonika Sharma ◽  
Dhiraj Dutta ◽  
Sanjai Kumar Dwivedi

The presence of microbes in drinking water is a serious health hazard demanding immediate attention. Silver is known for centuries for its highly effective antimicrobial properties against a variety of microorganisms. Sand is a natural filter media that is widely used in water purification systems for the removal of dirt and suspended matter from water. Hence the development of additional antimicrobial features in commonly used filter material i.e. sand by coating with silver is an alternative technology for providing a safe drinking-water free from microbes. The present study was performed to develop a cost-effective material with antimicrobial properties by coating locally available river sand with silver. The coated material was subsequently used for its antimicrobial performance by using standard methods. To perform the tests E.coli was isolated from wastewater by using standard microbiological protocols. Thereafter, a biochemical test and antibiotic sensitivity assay were performed. Synthesised silver-coated sand was tested for its antibacterial activity against E.coli through the agar well diffusion method. The results showed a zone of clearance ≥40 mm with 700 mg of synthesised sample. To further determine the efficacy of developed material against E.coli load in artificially contaminated water, experiments were conducted by passing contaminated water through the material stuffed inside a hollow tube filter. A colony count reduction of 86.67 per cent was observed on passing 1000 ml of 3x103 CFU/ml contaminated water through the filter. The present study suggests that additional functionality of microbial reduction can be introduced in the sand through the silver coating. The developed material can be effectively used for the removal of fecal coliforms (E.coli) present in water bodies at an effective cost in addition to the removal of traditional impurities like dirt and suspended materials.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew John PENDERY

There are some striking similarities between Legionnaire’s disease and COVID-19. Thesymptoms, age group and sex at risk are identical. The geographical distribution of both diseases is similar in Europe overall, and within the USA, France and Italy. The environmental distributions are also similar. However Legionnaire’s disease is caused by Legionella bacteria while COVID-19 is caused by the Corona virus. Whereas COVID-19 is contagious, Legionnaire’s disease is environmental. Legionella bacteria are commonly found in drinking water systems and near air conditioning cooling towers. Legionnaire’sdisease is caught by inhaling contaminated water droplets. The Legionella bacteria does not spread person to person and only causes disease if it enters the lungs.Could the Corona virus be making it easier for Legionella bacteria to enter the lungs?


1993 ◽  
Vol 27 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 127-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Dizer ◽  
J. Dürkop ◽  
A. Grohmann ◽  
H. Kopecka ◽  
J. M. López-Pila

Secondary effluent of wastewater treatment plants contains a high number of viruses and other pathogens, which pose a health risk to the population, (especially when receiv ng waters are used for bathing and swimming, or for growing shellfish. In areas with a high density of population, where drinking water supply is dependent on surface waters and contaminated rivers are the primary source of drinking water, failure of the filtration or of the disinfection step, or of any other “barriers” supposed to warrant safe potable water, will increase the risk of health hazard for the consumer. We have compared the efficiency of viral elimination in secondary effluent by flocculation, uv rradiation and membrane filtration taking naturally occurring, or additionally seeded f2 phages, as indicator for viruses. Flocculation decreased the number of phages present in secondary effluent by more than two logs. If combined with uv irradiation, the elimination reached five additional logs. Membrane filtration eliminated essentially all naturally occurring phages. Improvement of the quality of surface waters calls for a refinement of detection methods for viruses. We have found that the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) might be used for detecting viruses in surface waters.


Materials ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (24) ◽  
pp. 5840
Author(s):  
Enver Faella ◽  
Simona Mancini ◽  
Michele Guida ◽  
Albina Cuomo ◽  
Domenico Guida

Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas present in the hydrosphere, lithosphere and atmosphere abundantly. Its ionizing radiation provides the largest human internal exposure by inhalation and ingestion to natural sources, constituting a serious health hazard. The contribution to total exposure is mainly due to inhalation, as ingestion by food or drinking water is typically very small. However, because of public health concerns, the contributions from all these sources are limited by regulations and remedial action should be taken in the event that the defined threshold values are overcome. In this paper, the first campaign of measurements to control the radon activity concentration in drinking water from public water supplies in the province of Salerno, south Italy, is described. The results represent a main reference for the area, as it was never investigated before. The purpose of this survey was to contribute to data compilation concerning the presence of radon-222 in groundwater in the Campania region and to determine the associated risk for different age groups. The maximum radon activity concentrations and the related total annual public effective dose turned out to be lower than the threshold values (100 Bq/l and 0.1 mSv/y, respectively) indicated by international guidelines and the national regulation, showing that the health risks for public consumption can be considered negligible.


Author(s):  
E. Vijaya Sekhar ◽  
Subhas S. Karki ◽  
Javarappa Rangaswamy ◽  
Mahesh Bhat ◽  
Sujeet Kumar

Abstract Background Sulfonamides (sulfa drugs) and the metals like mercury, copper, and silver bear antimicrobial properties. The discovery of broad-spectrum antibiotics such as penicillins, cephalosporins, and fluoroquinolones has reduced their use. However, in some instances these drugs are the first-line treatment. The metal-based sulfonamide (e.g., silver sulfadiazine) is considered as first choice treatment in post-burn therapy while the use of silver nanoparticle-cephalexin conjugate to cure Escherichia coli infection explains the synergistic effect of sulfa drugs and their metal conjugates. With growing interest in metal-based sulfonamides and the Schiff base chemistry, it was decided to synthesize sulfonamide Schiff base metal complexes as antioxidant and antimicrobial agent. Results The Fe (III), Ru (III), Co (II), Ni (II), Cu (II), Pd (II), Zn (II), Cd (II), and Hg (II) metal complexes of 4-((thiophen-2-ylmethylene)-amino)-benzenesulfonamide (TMABS) were prepared and studied for thermal stability, geometry, and other electronic properties. The ligand TMABS (Schiff base) and its metal complexes were screened in-vitro for 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging and antimicrobial properties against Gram-positive (+ve) Bacillus subtilis (MTCC-441), Staphylococcus aureus (MTCC 7443), Gram-negative (-ve) Escherichia coli (MTCC 40), Salmonella typhi (MTCC 3231), and fungal strains Aspergillus niger (MTCC-1344) and Penicillium rubrum by agar well diffusion method. Results summarized in Tables 3, 4, and 5 represent the inhibitory concentration (IC50) in micromole (μM). The zone of inhibition (ZI) in millimeter (mm) represents antimicrobial properties of TMABS and its metal complexes. Conclusions The synthesized sulfanilamide Schiff base (TMABS) behaved as a neutral and bidentate ligand coordinating with metal ions through its azomethine nitrogen and thiophene sulfur to give complexes with coordination number of 4 and 6 (Fig. 3). The nucleophilic addition of sulfanilamide amino group (–NH2) group to carbonyl carbon (>C=O) of benzaldehyde gave sulfanilamide Schiff base (imine) (Fig. 2). All the metal complexes were colored and stable at room temperature. With IC50 of 9.5 ± 0.1 and 10.0 ± 0.7 μM, the Co, Cu, and Pd complexes appeared better antioxidant than the ligand TMABS (155.3±0.1 μM). The zone of inhibition (ZI) of Hg (28 mm) and Ru complexes (20 mm) were similar to the ligand TMABS (20 mm) against Aspergillus niger (MTCC-1344) as in Figs. 4, 5, and 6. None of the synthesized derivatives had shown better antimicrobial properties than the standard streptomycin sulfate and fluconazole.


Materials ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (19) ◽  
pp. 4383
Author(s):  
Barbara Lapinska ◽  
Aleksandra Szram ◽  
Beata Zarzycka ◽  
Janina Grzegorczyk ◽  
Louis Hardan ◽  
...  

Modifying the composition of dental restorative materials with antimicrobial agents might induce their antibacterial potential against cariogenic bacteria, e.g., S.mutans and L.acidophilus, as well as antifungal effect on C.albicans that are major oral pathogens. Essential oils (EOs) are widely known for antimicrobial activity and are successfully used in dental industry. The study aimed at evaluating antibacterial and antifungal activity of EOs and composite resin material (CR) modified with EO against oral pathogens. Ten EOs (i.e., anise, cinnamon, citronella, clove, geranium, lavender, limette, mint, rosemary thyme) were tested using agar diffusion method. Cinnamon and thyme EOs showed significantly highest antibacterial activity against S.mutans and L.acidophilus among all tested EOs. Anise and limette EOs showed no antibacterial activity against S.mutans. All tested EOs exhibited antifungal activity against C.albicans, whereas cinnamon EO showed significantly highest and limette EO significantly lowest activity. Next, 1, 2 or 5 µL of cinnamon EO was introduced into 2 g of CR and microbiologically tested. The modified CR showed higher antimicrobial activity in comparison to unmodified one. CR containing 2 µL of EO showed the best antimicrobial properties against S.mutans and C.albicans, while CR modified with 1 µL of EO showed the best antimicrobial properties against L.acidophilus.


1981 ◽  
Vol 44 (12) ◽  
pp. 917-920 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. STERSKY ◽  
B. BLANCHFIELD ◽  
C. THACKER ◽  
H. PIVNICK

Day-old chicks (Gallus domesticus) were treated with cultured feces of adult chickens according to the Nurmi concept and were challenged 2 days later with Salmonella typhimurium. Treated chicks were less susceptible to infection than untreated chicks (16% vs. 79% infected). Those treated chicks that did become infected, contaminated their drinking water with fewer Salmonella than the untreated chicks (maximum of 104/ml vs. ⩾ 107/ml). Fecally contaminated water may be a major source for spreading Salmonella infection within a flock.


2007 ◽  
Vol 53 (6) ◽  
pp. 688-694 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annie Locas ◽  
Christine Barthe ◽  
Benoit Barbeau ◽  
Annie Carrière ◽  
Pierre Payment

A 1 year study was undertaken on groundwater that was a source of drinking water in the province of Quebec, Canada. Twelve municipal wells (raw water) were sampled monthly during a 1 year period, for a total of 160 samples. Using historic data, the 12 sites were categorized into 3 groups: group A (no known contamination), group B (sporadically contaminated by total coliforms), and group C (historic and continuous contamination by total coliforms and (or) fecal coliforms). Bacterial indicators (total coliform, Escherichia coli , enteroccoci), viral indicators (somatic and male-specific coliphages), total culturable human enteric viruses, and noroviruses were analyzed at every sampling site. Total coliforms were the best indicator of microbial degradation, and coliform bacteria were always present at the same time as human enteric viruses. Two samples contained human enteric viruses but no fecal pollution indicators (E. coli, enterococci, or coliphages), suggesting the limited value of these microorganisms in predicting the presence of human enteric viruses in groundwater. Our results underline the value of historic data in assessing the vulnerability of a well on the basis of raw water quality and in detecting degradation of the source. This project allowed us to characterize the microbiologic and virologic quality of groundwater used as municipal drinking water sources in Quebec.


2010 ◽  
Vol 50 (6) ◽  
pp. 414 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon H. Bird ◽  
R. S. Hegarty ◽  
R. Woodgate

Three experiments were conducted to evaluate routes by which viable rumen ciliate-protozoa may be transferred between mature sheep. Feed, water and faecal material were tested as possible vectors for protozoal transfer in addition to direct animal to animal contact. In Experiment 1, protozoa-free sheep were either offered or orally dosed with protozoa-contaminated material or allowed contact with faunated animals. The treated sheep were then monitored over a 4-week period for the appearance of protozoa in the rumen. Protozoa were successfully transferred to protozoa-free animals via contaminated water but no transfer occurred via feed or faeces or by direct animal to animal contact. In Experiment 2, the drinking water of penned faunated sheep was found to become contaminated with protozoa within 4–6 h of being placed in the pen. In Experiment 3, nine protozoa-free sheep were grazed in a paddock with a flock of 75 faunated ewes for periods of 1–3 weeks, and protozoa became established in one protozoa-free sheep. The results of these studies suggest that the most likely mode of transfer of protozoal cells from one sheep to another is via water, rather than by rumen fluid contaminating feed, or from faeces of faunated sheep. Further tests are required to demonstrate protozoal transmission via water occur under a range of conditions and inoculum levels.


2000 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 565-576 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre Payment ◽  
Aminata Berte ◽  
Michèle Prévost ◽  
Bruno Ménard ◽  
Benoît Barbeau

A 300-km portion of the Saint Lawrence hydrological basin in the province of Québec (Canada) and 45 water treatment plants were studied. River water used by drinking water treatment plants was analyzed (6-L sample volumes) to determine the level of occurrence of bacterial indicators (total coliforms, fecal coliforms, and Clostridium perfringens) and pathogens (Giardia lamblia, Cryptosporidium, human enteric viruses). Pathogens and bacterial indicators were found at all sites at a wide range of values. Logistic regression analysis revealed significant correlations between the bacterial indicators and the pathogens. Physicochemical and treatment practices data were collected from most water treatment plants and used to estimate the level of removal of pathogens achieved under cold (0°C-4°C) and warm (20°C-25°C) water temperature conditions. The calculated removal values were then used to estimate the annual risk of Giardia infection using mathematical models and to compare the sites. The estimated range of probability of infection ranged from 0.75 to less than 0.0001 for the populations exposed. Given the numerous assumptions made, the model probably overestimated the annual risk, but it provided comparative data of the efficacy of the water treatment plants and thereby contributes to the protection of public health.Key words: public health, drinking water, health risk, pathogen occurrence.


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