Physical and chemical parameter correlations with technical and technological characteristics of heating systems and the presence of Legionella spp. in the hot water supply

Rakić, Anita; Štambuk-Giljanović, Nives

doi:10.1007/s10661-015-5047-8

Cited by 15 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…There have been numerous studies which have linked potable water to outbreaks of Legionellosis [ 6 , 14 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 ]. However, there have also been numerous studies which have detected the pathogen from potable water not associated with a specific outbreak; this includes studies from the U.S. [ 24 , 25 ], The Netherlands [ 26 , 27 , 28 ], Germany [ 29 , 30 ], Sweden [ 31 ], Israel [ 32 ], Australia [ 33 ], Latvia [ 34 ], Italy [ 35 ], Spain [ 36 ], UK [ 37 ], Croatia [ 38 ], France [ 39 ], Iran [ 40 ] and China [ 41 ]. A recent study by Donohue [ 42 ] collected 272 water samples from public and private cold water taps across the U.S. and found that 47% were positive for L. pneumophila Sg1 using qPCR.…”

Section: The Presence Of Legionella In Potable mentioning

confidence: 99%

Legionella Risk Management and Control in Potable Water Systems: Argument for the Abolishment of Routine Testing

Whiley

2016

IJERPH

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Legionella is an opportunistic pathogen of public health significance. One of the main sources of Legionella is potable water systems. As a consequence of aging populations there is an increasing demographic considered at high risk for Legionellosis and, as such, a review of the guidelines is required. Worldwide, Legionella has been detected from many potable water sources, suggesting it is ubiquitous in this environment. Previous studies have identified the limitations of the current standard method for Legionella detection and the high possibility of it returning both false negative and false positive results. There is also huge variability in Legionella test results for the same water sample when conducted at different laboratories. However, many guidelines still recommend the testing of water systems. This commentary argues for the removal of routine Legionella monitoring from all water distribution guidelines. This procedure is financially consuming and false negatives may result in managers being over-confident with a system or a control mechanism. Instead, the presence of the pathogen should be assumed and focus spent on managing appropriate control measures and protecting high-risk population groups.

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Section: The Presence Of Legionella In Potable mentioning

confidence: 99%

Legionella Risk Management and Control in Potable Water Systems: Argument for the Abolishment of Routine Testing

Whiley

2016

IJERPH

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“…As a result, factors affecting the prey community will have consequences on the Legionella host community, and therefore, indirectly on the Legionella community. Accordingly, competition between prey species and non-prey species, competition by predation for the same prey by the non-Legionella host community and chemical and physical parameters of the environments are all elements that can have negative effects on the prey community [37][38][39]. For instance, Bdellovibrio spp.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unravelling the importance of the eukaryotic and bacterial communities and their relationship with Legionella spp. ecology in cooling towers: a complex network

et al. 2020

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Background Cooling towers are a major source of large community-associated outbreaks of Legionnaires’ disease, a severe pneumonia. This disease is contracted when inhaling aerosols that are contaminated with bacteria from the genus Legionella, most importantly Legionella pneumophila. How cooling towers support the growth of this bacterium is still not well understood. As Legionella species are intracellular parasites of protozoa, it is assumed that protozoan community in cooling towers play an important role in Legionella ecology and outbreaks. However, the exact mechanism of how the eukaryotic community contributes to Legionella ecology is still unclear. Therefore, we used 18S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing to characterize the eukaryotic communities of 18 different cooling towers. The data from the eukaryotic community was then analysed with the bacterial community of the same towers in order to understand how each community could affect Legionella spp. ecology in cooling towers. Results We identified several microbial groups in the cooling tower ecosystem associated with Legionella spp. that suggest the presence of a microbial loop in these systems. Dissolved organic carbon was shown to be a major factor in shaping the eukaryotic community and may be an important factor for Legionella ecology. Network analysis, based on co-occurrence, revealed that Legionella was correlated with a number of different organisms. Out of these, the bacterial genus Brevundimonas and the ciliate class Oligohymenophorea were shown, through in vitro experiments, to stimulate the growth of L. pneumophila through direct and indirect mechanisms. Conclusion Our results suggest that Legionella ecology depends on the host community, including ciliates and on several groups of organisms that contribute to its survival and growth in the cooling tower ecosystem. These findings further support the idea that some cooling tower microbiomes may promote the survival and growth of Legionella better than others.

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“…36 With an ideal growth range between 28 and 40 °C, 37 heated water systems are thought to serve as the primary source for Legionella occurrence and transmission, although a wide variety of sources have been linked to legionellosis. 38 Many engineered water systems tend to have physical conditions conducive to Legionella , 39 biofilms they associate with, 40 and eukaryotic hosts they replicate within, 41 all factors commonly found and amplified in premise plumbing (i.e., that found in buildings such as homes, schools, and hospitals). 42 …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ten questions concerning the aerosolization and transmission of Legionella in the built environment

Prussin

Schwake

Marr

2017

Building and Environment

101

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Legionella is a genus of pathogenic Gram-negative bacteria responsible for a serious disease known as legionellosis, which is transmitted via inhalation of this pathogen in aerosol form. There are two forms of legionellosis: Legionnaires' disease, which causes pneumonia-like symptoms, and Pontiac fever, which causes influenza-like symptoms. Legionella can be aerosolized from various water sources in the built environment including showers, faucets, hot tubs/swimming pools, cooling towers, and fountains. Incidence of the disease is higher in the summertime, possibly because of increased use of cooling towers for air conditioning systems and differences in water chemistry when outdoor temperatures are higher. Although there have been decades of research related to Legionella transmission, many knowledge gaps remain. While conventional wisdom suggests that showering is an important source of exposure in buildings, existing measurements do not provide strong support for this idea. There has been limited research on the potential for Legionella transmission through heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. Epidemiological data suggest a large proportion of legionellosis cases go unreported, as most people who are infected do not seek medical attention. Additionally, controlled laboratory studies examining water-to-air transfer and source tracking are still needed. Herein, we discuss ten questions that spotlight current knowledge about Legionella transmission in the built environment, engineering controls that might prevent future disease outbreaks, and future research that is needed to advance understanding of transmission and control of legionellosis.

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Physical and chemical parameter correlations with technical and technological characteristics of heating systems and the presence of Legionella spp. in the hot water supply

Cited by 15 publications

References 26 publications

Legionella Risk Management and Control in Potable Water Systems: Argument for the Abolishment of Routine Testing

Legionella Risk Management and Control in Potable Water Systems: Argument for the Abolishment of Routine Testing

Unravelling the importance of the eukaryotic and bacterial communities and their relationship with Legionella spp. ecology in cooling towers: a complex network

Ten questions concerning the aerosolization and transmission of Legionella in the built environment

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