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HERO ID
3604332
Reference Type
Journal Article
Title
Prevalence and diversity of Chlamydiales and other amoeba-resisting bacteria in domestic drinking water systems
Author(s)
Lienard, J; Croxatto, A; Gervaix, A; Lévi, Y; Loret, JF; Posfay-Barbe, KM; Greub, G
Year
2017
Volume
15
Page Numbers
107-116
Language
English
PMID
28070335
DOI
10.1016/j.nmni.2016.10.003
Abstract
A growing number of human infections incriminate environmental bacteria that have evolved virulent mechanisms to resist amoebae and use them as a replicative niche. These bacteria are designated amoeba-resisting bacteria (ARB). Despite the isolation of these ARB in various human clinical samples, the possible source of infection remains undetermined in most cases. However, it is known that the ARB Legionella pneumophila, for instance, causes a respiratory infection in susceptible hosts after inhalation of contaminated water aerosols from various sources. The Chlamydiales order contains many ARB, such as Parachlamydia acanthamoebae or Simkania negevensis, previously implicated in human respiratory infections with no identified contamination sources. We thus investigated whether domestic water systems are a potential source of transmission of these Chlamydiales to humans by using amoebal culture and molecular methods. Other important ARB such as mycobacteria and Legionella were also investigated, as were their possible amoebal hosts. This work reports for the first time a very high prevalence and diversity of Chlamydiales in drinking water, being detected in 35 (72.9%) of 48 investigated domestic water systems, with members of the Parachlamydiaceae family being dominantly detected. Furthermore, various Legionella and mycobacteria species were also recovered, some species of which are known to be causal agents of human infections.
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