Diversity of Somatic Coliphages in Coastal Regions with Different Levels of Anthropogenic Activity in São Paulo State, Brazil

Abstract

Bacteriophages are the most abundant and genetically diverse viruses on Earth, with complex ecology in both quantitative and qualitative terms. Somatic coliphages (SC) have been reported to be good indicators of fecal pollution in seawater. This study focused on determining the concentration of SC and their diversity by electron microscopy of seawater, plankton, and bivalve samples collected at three coastal regions in São Paulo, Brazil. The SC counts varied from <1 to 3.4 ؋ 10 3 PFU/100 ml in seawater (73 samples tested), from <1 to 4.7 ؋ 10 2 PFU/g in plankton (46 samples tested), and from <1 to 2.2 ؋ 10 1 PFU/g in bivalves (11 samples tested). In seawater samples, a relationship between the thermotolerant coliforms and Escherichia coli and SC was observed at the three regions (P ‫؍‬ 0.0001) according to the anthropogenic activities present at each region. However, SC were found in plankton samples from three regions: Baixada Santista (17/20), Canal de São Sebastião (6/14), and Ubatuba (3/12). In seawater samples collected from Baixada Santista, four morphotypes were observed: A1 (4.5%), B1 (50%), C1 (36.4%), and D1 (9.1%). One coliphage, Siphoviridae type T1, had the longest tail: between 939 and 995 nm. In plankton samples, Siphoviridae (65.8%), Podoviridae (15.8%), Microviridae (15.8%), and Myoviridae (2.6%) were found. In bivalves, only the morphotype B1 was observed. These SC were associated with enteric hosts: enterobacteria, E. coli, Proteus, Salmonella, and Yersinia. Baixada Santista is an area containing a high level of fecal pollution compared to those in the Canal de São Sebastião and Ubatuba. This is the first report of coliphage diversity in seawater, plankton, and bivalve samples collected from São Paulo coastal regions. A better characterization of SC diversity in coastal environments will help with the management and evaluation of the microbiological risks for recreation, seafood cultivation, and consumption.

Riding the wave of genomics to investigate aquatic coliphage diversity and activity

“…The titre of coliphages in all water samples was extremely low (range 0.0125 pfu ml −1 ‐0.28 pfu ml −1 ). This low abundance is lower than previous reports of coliphages in coastal environments that are around 1 × 10 2 pfu ml (Dutka et al, ; Janelidze et al, ; Burbano‐Rosero et al ., ). This may be linked to water quality, since coliphage abundance is known to be linked to faecal contamination.…”

“…Regarding the diversity of coliphages found in seawater, studies have largely focused on morphological diversity (Muniesa et al, ; Reyes and Jiang, ; Burbano‐Rosero et al ., ; Jofre et al, ) and assessing the number and range of E. coli hosts they can infect. This has shown that many coliphages have a broad host range, with detection of coliphages comprising members of the Siphoviridae and Myoviridae families off the Californian (Reyes and Jiang, ) and Brazilian coasts (Burbano‐Rosero et al ., ) with Siphoviridae being the most frequently observed taxa.…”

Free-Living and Plankton-Associated Vibrios: Assessment in Ballast Water, Harbor Areas, and Coastal Ecosystems in Brazil

“…These stations/sites were selected according to their trophic status and level of anthropogenic influence. For instance, Santos is more urbanized and eutrophic than São Sebastião and Ubatuba (Burbano-Rosero et al, 2011). …”

General and host-associated bacteriophage indicators of faecal pollution

“…A substantial amount of data about the presence and levels of indicator phages, mostly coliphages, in all type of surface waters and in very different climatic areas is available (Burbano-Rosero et al, 2011;Contreras-Coll et al, 2002;Ebdon et al, 2007;Haramoto et al, 2005;Ibarluzea et al, 2007;Jiang et al, 2007;Lucena et al, 2003;Rezaeinejad et al, 2014;Taylor et al, 2001). The general trend is that the three groups of phages keep the same proportions as in raw wastewater, but they have reduced the concentration gap with either E. coli or faecal coliform bacteria.…”