Dataset Information

Characterization of Legionella Species from Watersheds in British Columbia, Canada.

ABSTRACT: Legionella spp. present in some human-made water systems can cause Legionnaires' disease in susceptible individuals. Although legionellae have been isolated from the natural environment, variations in the organism's abundance over time and its relationship to aquatic microbiota are poorly understood. Here, we investigated the presence and diversity of legionellae through 16S rRNA gene amplicon and metagenomic sequencing of DNA from isolates collected from seven sites in three watersheds with varied land uses over a period of 1 year. Legionella spp. were found in all watersheds and sampling sites, comprising up to 2.1% of the bacterial community composition. The relative abundance of Legionella tended to be higher in pristine sites than in sites affected by agricultural activity. The relative abundance levels of Amoebozoa, some of which are natural hosts of legionellae, were similarly higher in pristine sites. Compared to other bacterial genera detected, Legionella had both the highest richness and highest alpha diversity. Our findings indicate that a highly diverse population of legionellae may be found in a variety of natural aquatic sources. Further characterization of these diverse natural populations of Legionella will help inform prevention and control efforts aimed at reducing the risk of Legionella colonization of built environments, which could ultimately decrease the risk of human disease. IMPORTANCE Many species of Legionella can cause Legionnaires' disease, a significant cause of bacterial pneumonia. Legionella in human-made water systems such as cooling towers and building plumbing systems are the primary sources of Legionnaires' disease outbreaks. In this temporal study of natural aquatic environments, Legionella relative abundance was shown to vary in watersheds associated with different land uses. Analysis of the Legionella sequences detected at these sites revealed highly diverse populations that included potentially novel Legionella species. These findings have important implications for understanding the ecology of Legionella and control measures for this pathogen that are aimed at reducing human disease.

SUBMITTER: Peabody MA

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5541159 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jul-Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Characterization of <i>Legionella</i> Species from Watersheds in British Columbia, Canada.

Peabody Michael A MA Caravas Jason A JA Morrison Shatavia S SS Mercante Jeffrey W JW Prystajecky Natalie A NA Raphael Brian H BH Brinkman Fiona S L FSL

mSphere 20170701 4

<i>Legionella</i> spp. present in some human-made water systems can cause Legionnaires' disease in susceptible individuals. Although legionellae have been isolated from the natural environment, variations in the organism's abundance over time and its relationship to aquatic microbiota are poorly understood. Here, we investigated the presence and diversity of legionellae through 16S rRNA gene amplicon and metagenomic sequencing of DNA from isolates collected from seven sites in three watersheds w ...[more]

PMID: 28776042

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Project description:BackgroundClose-contact rates are thought to be a driving force behind the transmission of many infectious respiratory diseases. Yet, contact rates and their relation to transmission and the impact of control measures, are seldom quantified. We quantify the response of contact rates, reported cases and transmission of COVID-19, to public health contact-restriction orders, and examine the associations among these three variables in the province of British Columbia, Canada.MethodsWe derived time series data for contact rates, daily cases and transmission of COVID-19 from a social contacts survey, reported case counts and by fitting a transmission model to reported cases, respectively. We used segmented regression to investigate impacts of public health orders; Pearson correlation to determine associations between contact rates and transmission; and vector autoregressive modeling to quantify lagged associations between contacts rates, daily cases, and transmission.ResultsDeclines in contact rates and transmission occurred concurrently with the announcement of public health orders, whereas declines in cases showed a reporting delay of about 2 weeks. Contact rates were a significant driver of COVID-19 and explained roughly 19 and 20% of the variation in new cases and transmission, respectively. Interestingly, increases in COVID-19 transmission and cases were followed by reduced contact rates: overall, daily cases explained about 10% of the variation in subsequent contact rates.ConclusionWe showed that close-contact rates were a significant time-series driver of transmission and ultimately of reported cases of COVID-19 in British Columbia, Canada and that they varied in response to public health orders. Our results also suggest possible behavioral feedback, by which increased reported cases lead to reduced subsequent contact rates. Our findings help to explain and validate the commonly assumed, but rarely measured, response of close contact rates to public health guidelines and their impact on the dynamics of infectious diseases.

Dataset Information

Characterization of Legionella Species from Watersheds in British Columbia, Canada.

Publications

Characterization of <i>Legionella</i> Species from Watersheds in British Columbia, Canada.

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