Isolation of the Legionnaires' Disease Bacterium from Environmental Samples

Morris, George K.; Patton, C M; Feeley, James C.; Johnson, Scott E.; Gorman, George W.; Martin, W. J.; Skaliy, Peter; Mallison, George F.; Politi, Brenda D.; Mackel, Donald C.

doi:10.7326/0003-4819-90-4-664

Cited by 172 publications

(58 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Environmental surveys in this country and the U.S.A. indicate that the organism is widespread in nature. It has been recovered from mud, rivers, lakes and other natural collections of water (Morris et al 1979;Fliermans et al 1979;Fliermans et al 1981) and it is clear that the bacterium is also present in man-made water systems. It has been found in domestic water and recirculating cooling water systems (Morris et al 1979;Tobin, Swann and Bartlett, 1981;Cordes et al 1981).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It has been recovered from mud, rivers, lakes and other natural collections of water (Morris et al 1979;Fliermans et al 1979;Fliermans et al 1981) and it is clear that the bacterium is also present in man-made water systems. It has been found in domestic water and recirculating cooling water systems (Morris et al 1979;Tobin, Swann and Bartlett, 1981;Cordes et al 1981). The importance of each as a source of L. pneumophila infections is not known but the prevalence ofthe bacterium in cooling water systems makes them important potential sources.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Legionella pneumophila in cooling water systems: Report of a survey of cooling towers in London and a pilot trial of selected biocides

Kurtz

Bartlett²,

Newton³

et al. 1982

J. Hyg.

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SUMMARYFourteen recirculating cooling water systems were surveyed during the summer, 1981, to see what factors might influence the prevalence of Legionella pneumophila. The effect on the organism of three anti-microbials was studied, each in two systems, by intermittent treatment at two week intervals.L. pneumophila was isolated from six of the 14 cooling systems at the beginning of the trial but by the end was present in ten. An association was found between the presence of the organism and the concentration of dissolved solids, and chlorides and the pH. There also appeared to be associations with exclusion of light and higher water temperatures.Repeated tests on eight untreated systems showed that two were consistently infected, three became and remained infected, one was infected on a single occasion and two were never infected with L. pneumophila. Treatment of a contaminated system, either with a 10 p.p.m mixture of a quaternary ammonium compound and tributyltinoxide or slow release chlorine briquettes (maximum recorded free chlorine level 1-2 p.p.m.), did not eliminated legionellae. Treatment of two infected towers with a chlorinated phenol (100 p.p.m.) eliminated legionellae for at least three days, but after 14 days the organism was again found.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Legionella pneumophila in cooling water systems: Report of a survey of cooling towers in London and a pilot trial of selected biocides

Kurtz

Bartlett²,

Newton³

et al. 1982

J. Hyg.

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“…Legionella pneumophila, the causative agent of Legionnaires' Disease, has been reported to be prevalent in both man-made and natural aquatic environments (Fliermans et al 1979Fliermans 1984;Morris et al 1979;Tison et al 1980). Numerous studies have indicated a strong association of the incidence of legionel losis with cooling systems (e.g., cooling towers, exchangers, and wash systems) (Orrison, Cherry, and Milan 1981;Cordes et a1 .…”

Section: Prevalence Of Legionel La In Aquatic Environmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental assessment of the potential effects of aquifer thermal energy storage systems on microorganisms in groundwater

Hicks¹,

Stewart²

1988

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SUMMARYThe primary objective of this study was to evaluate the potential environmental effects (both adverse and beneficial) of aquifer thermal energy storage (ATES) technology pertaining to microbial communities indigenous to subsurface environments (i .e., aquifers) and the propagation, movement, and potential release of pathogenic microorganisms (specifical ly, Legionel la) within ATES systems. Seasonal storage of thermal energy in aquifers shows great promise to reduce peak demand; reduce electric utility load problems; contribute to establishing favorable economics for district heating and cooling systems; and reduce pol 1 ution from extraction, refining, and combustion of fossi 1 fuels. However, concerns that the widespread implementation of this technology may have adverse effects on biological systems indigenous to aquifers, as well as he1 p to propagate and re1 ease pathogenic organisms that enter these envi ronments need to be resolved.Groundwaters are habitat to an abundant and diverse microbial population. The activities of these organisms are important to the removal of a variety of hazardous wastes. However, these organisms have only recently been studied, and their full importance is not known at this time. The growth and activity of microorganisms indigenous to aquifers are governed by a variety of environmental factors including: the porosity of the aquifer nutrient avai 1 abi 1 i ty oxidation-reduction conditions PH temperature the adsorption of microorganisms to subsurface particles. Perturbations, due to the implementation of ATES technology, can locally alter these physicochemical factors which can, to an unknown degree, affect the growth and activities of microorganisms inhabiting aquifers.Of the environmental factors 1 isted above, groundwater temperature a1 terations caused by injection of heated or cooled waters during the operation of ATES systems have the greatest potential for altering the types and activities of native microbial communities. Microorganisms, depending on the species, have specific temperature ranges that allow for their growth. If the use of ATES systems alters the temperature of an aquifer beyond the range that supports growth, microbial activity will become dormant or cease. Other ATES-related alterations that can cause changes in the microbial ecology of aquifers include groundwater chemistry (e.g., pH, Eh, solubi 1 ity of minerals) and changes in physical characteristics (e.g., adsorptive to subsurface particles, hydraul ic conductivity). However, the true impact of such changes in the microbial ecology and activity can not yet be assessed. Experience with ATES in other countries, as well as in the U.S., has not indicated major impacts; however, intensive monitoring programs have not been conducted in conjunction with the operation of most systems.In addition to indigenous microbial populations, allochthonous organisms (i .e., organisms foreign to that environment) can survive and grow in aquifers. A1 lochthonous microorganisms detrimental to human health (i .e., ...

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“…Legionella are flagellated Gram-negative bacteria that belong to the class of gamma-proteobacteria. They are ubiquitously present in water habitats, including natural and man-made reservoirs [14,37] where they infect and parasitize protozoa [1,45]. In the host, a specialized compartment is formed, that enables replication of Legionella [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human Anti-Lipopolysaccharid (LPS) antibodies against Legionella with high species specificity

Kühn

Thiem

Steinert

et al. 2019

HAB

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Abstract. Legionella are Gram-negative bacteria that are ubiquitously present in natural and man-made water reservoirs. When humans inhale aerosolized water contaminated with Legionella, alveolar macrophages can be infected, which may lead to a lifethreatening pneumonia called Legionnaires' disease. Due to the universal distribution of Legionella in water and their potential threat to human health, the Legionella concentration in water for human use must be strictly monitored, which is difficult since the standard detection still relies on lengthy cultivation and analysis of bacterial morphology. In this study, an antibody against L. pneumophila has been generated from the naïve human HAL antibody libraries by phage-display for the first time. The panning was performed on whole bacterial cells in order to select antibodies that bind specifically to the cell surface of untreated Legionella. The bacterial cell wall component lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was identified as the target structure. Specific binding to the important pathogenic L. pneumophila strains Corby, Philadelphia-1 and Knoxville was observed, while no binding was detected to seven members of the families Enterobacteriaceae, Pseudomonadaceae or Clostridiaceae. Production of this antibody in the recombinant scFv-Fc format using either a murine or a human Fc part allowed the set-up of a sandwich-ELISA for detection of Legionella cells. The scFv-Fc construct proved to be very stable, even when stored for several weeks at elevated temperatures. A sensitivity limit of 4,000 cells was achieved. The scFv-Fc antibody pair was integrated on a biosensor, demonstrating the specific and fast detection of L. pneumophila on a portable device. With this system, 10,000 Legionella cells were detected within 35 min. Combined with a water filtration/concentration system, this antibody may be developed into a promising reagent for rapid on-site Legionella monitoring.

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Isolation of the Legionnaires' Disease Bacterium from Environmental Samples

Cited by 172 publications

References 9 publications

Legionella pneumophila in cooling water systems: Report of a survey of cooling towers in London and a pilot trial of selected biocides

Legionella pneumophila in cooling water systems: Report of a survey of cooling towers in London and a pilot trial of selected biocides

Environmental assessment of the potential effects of aquifer thermal energy storage systems on microorganisms in groundwater

Human Anti-Lipopolysaccharid (LPS) antibodies against Legionella with high species specificity

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