title: Effects of sample holding time on concentrations of microorganisms in water samples.
abstract: This research investigated the effects of extending the holding time of samples for microbial analysis beyond the standard of 24 hours for purposes such as watershed characterization. Experiments were conducted with both sanitary wastewater and stormwater samples. The refrigerated samples (4 degrees C) were held for up to 9 days before being analyzed for two pathogens (Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus) and five indicator organisms (total coliform, fecal coliform, fecal streptococcus, enterococcus, and Escherichia coli) by membrane filtration. The concentrations (as colony-forming units per 100 mL) were normalized by log10(transformation and used in subsequent statistical analysis testing for significant differences. The results suggested that the concentrations of microorganisms in water samples analyzed on days 1 and 2 did not vary significantly in 8 of 13 analyses. The results of a field study concluded that the concentration of fecal coliform did not change significantly between 7 hours holding time and greater than 24 hours holding time for fecal coliform.
authors.affiliation: US EPA Urban Watershed Management Branch, Edison, New Jersey 08837, USA. selvakumar.-ariamalar@epa.gov
authors.forename: Ariamalar
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Selvakumar
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Borst
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Boner
authors.forename: Phil
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mallon
mesh_terms: D004755:Enterobacteriaceae / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D011550:Pseudomonas aeruginosa / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013048:Specimen Handling; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D013997:Time Factors; D014871:Water Microbiology