ABSTRACTThe ideal host-associated genetic fecal marker would be capable of predicting the presence of specific pathogens of concern. Flowthrough freshwater microcosms containing mixed feces and inocula of the pathogensCampylobacter jejuni,Salmonella entericaserovar Typhimurium, and adenovirus were placed at ambient temperature in the presence and absence of diurnal sunlight. The totalEnterococcusDNA increased during the early periods (23 h) under sunlight exposure, even though cultivableEnterococcusand DNA in intact cells, as measured by propidium monoazide (PMA), decreased with first-order kinetics during the entire period. We found a significant difference in the decay of host-associatedBacteroidalescells between sunlight exposure and dark conditions (Pvalue < 0.05), whereas the persistence of host-associatedBacteroidalesDNA was comparable. The 2-log reduction times of adenovirus were 72 h for sunlight exposure and 99 h for dark conditions with similar decay rate constants (Pvalue = 0.13). The persistences of fecalBacteroidalescells andCampylobactercells exposed to sunlight were similar, and host-associatedBacteroidalesDNA and waterborne pathogen DNA were degraded at comparable rates (Pvalues > 0.05). Overall, the ratio of quantitative PCR (qPCR) cycle threshold (CT) values with and without PMA treatment was indicative of the time elapsed since inoculation of the microcosm with (i) fecal material from different animal sources based on host-associatedBacteroidalesand (ii) pure cultures of bacterial pathogens. The use of both PMA-qPCR and qPCR may yield more realistic information about recent sources of fecal contamination and result in improved prediction of waterborne pathogens and assessment of health risk.
Development and Validation of a Sensitive and Specific sodB-Based Quantitative PCR Assay for Molecular Detection of Ehrlichia Species
