A total of 60 samples were collected from 35 swimming pools in Beijing, China, and the presence of Cryptosporidium and Giardia were investigated. The results showed that 16.7% and 15.0% of samples were positive for Cryptosporidium oocyst and Giardia cysts, respectively, with a mean concentration of 0.30 oocysts/10 L and 0.27 cysts/10 L. The oocysts and cysts were found to have higher rates of occurrence in August than in May. Genotyping confirmed the presence of Cryptosporidium hominis, C. parvum, and Giardia assemblages A and B, all of which were associated with human infections. The predominant species/assemblages were C. hominis and Giardia assemblage A. Analyses of the relationships between parasite oocysts/cysts, indicator bacteria, and physical-chemical parameters revealed that there was no correlation between 2 parasites and fecal bacterial indicators, whilst there was a significant correlation between protozoa and urea concentration, which indicates that urea concentration rather than fecal bacterial indicators might be an appropriate index for chlorine-resistant protozoa in swimming pools. This study provides useful information to improve the safety of swimming pool water and deduce the risk of protozoan infections.

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This study cultivated denitrifying granular sludge in three up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactors using different fluctuation hydraulic retention time (HRT) strategies (reactor 1 (RC): constant HRT (C-HRT); reactor 2 (RDF): downward fluctuation HRT (DF-HRT); and reactor 3 (RUF): upward fluctuation HRT (UF-HRT)). The results verified that these fluctuation HRT strategies could enhance microbial diversity, while robust against fluctuations in nutrient load of the denitrifying granular sludge. Microbial aggregates appeared in RC, RUF and RDF on days 22, 12 and 7, respectively. The sludge in RUF and RDF achieved complete granulation on days 22 and 14, respectively. Compared to the results of RC and RUF, the acyl homoserine lactones (AHLs) concentration rapidly increased, and changed the components of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) resulted in the rapid formation of denitrifying granular sludge in RDF. These results demonstrate that microbial community, AHLs, EPS, and the denitrifying sludge granulation process were associated with each other. Informed from quorum sensing system, a mechanism for the granulation of denitrifying sludge using the DF-HRT strategy was proposed. The DF-HRT strategy is an economical and fast method to cultivate denitrifying granular sludge. We hope that the results of our research would provide some theoretical support for wastewater producing unstable plants.

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