Bioaerosols in the Midwestern United States

Rathnayake, Chathurika M.

doi:10.17077/etd.erbpa8ll

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

References 194 publications

(415 reference statements)

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“…Aerosolization of biological material is known to be possible via several mechanisms including bubble bursting 7–9 , evaporation, raindrop impaction 10,11 , and others 12–15 . The creation and persistence of bioaerosols can be associated with a range of variables related to environmental conditions and the built environment including rain events 16–19 , meteorological conditions 20–22 , urban surface waters and water features 6,23,24 , wastewater treatment unit processes that include mechanical mechanisms 25,26 , and other infrastructure. The mechanisms behind aerosolization and transport of microorganisms from liquid surfaces and the microbial effects on droplet lifetime have been well-characterized under controlled conditions 7,8 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detection and quantification of enteric pathogens in aerosols near open wastewater canals in cities with poor sanitation

Ginn

Rocha-Melogno

Bivins

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Urban sanitation infrastructure is inadequate in many low-income countries, leading to the presence of highly concentrated, uncontained fecal waste streams in densely populated areas. Combined with mechanisms of aerosolization, airborne transport of enteric microbes and their genetic material is possible in such settings but remains poorly characterized. We detected and quantified enteric pathogen-associated gene targets in aerosol samples near open wastewater canals (OWCs) or impacted surface waters and control sites in La Paz, Bolivia; Kanpur, India; and Atlanta, USA via multiplex qPCR (37 targets) and ddPCR (13 targets). We detected a wide range enteric pathogen-specific targets, some not previously reported in extramural urban aerosols, with more frequent detections of all enteric targets at higher densities in La Paz and Kanpur near OWCs. We report density estimates ranging from non-detects to 4.7 x 102 gc per m3air for targets including ST-ETEC, C. jejuni, EIEC/Shigella spp., Salmonella spp., norovirus, and Cryptosporidium spp. An estimated 25%, 76%, and 0% of samples containing positive pathogen detects were accompanied by culturable E. coli in La Paz, Kanpur, and Atlanta, respectively, suggesting potential for viability of enteric microbes at the point of sampling. Airborne transmission of enteric pathogens merits further investigation in cities with poor sanitation.

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