title: Detection of microsporidia in drinking water, wastewater and recreational rivers.
abstract: Diarrhea is the main health problem caused by human-related microsporidia, and waterborne transmission is one of the main risk factors for intestinal diseases. Recent studies suggest the involvement of water in the epidemiology of human microsporidiosis. However, studies related to the presence of microsporidia in different types of waters from countries where human microsporidiosis has been described are still scarce. Thirty-eight water samples from 8 drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs), 8 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and 6 recreational river areas (RRAs) from Galicia (NW Spain) have been analyzed. One hundred liters of water from DWTPs and 50 L of water from WWTPs and RRAs were filtered to recover parasites, using the IDEXX Filta-Max® system. Microsporidian spores were identified by Weber's stain and positive samples were analyzed by PCR, using specific primers for Enterocytozoon bieneusi, Encephalitozoon intestinalis, Encephalitozoon cuniculi, and Encephalitozoon hellem. Microsporidia spores were identified by staining protocols in eight samples (21.0%): 2 from DWTPs, 5 from WWTPs, and 1 from an RRA. In the RRA sample, the microsporidia were identified as E. intestinalis. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of human-pathogenic microsporidia in water samples from DWTPs, WWTPs and RRAs in Spain. These observations add further evidence to support that new and appropriate control and regulations for drinking, wastewater, and recreational waters should be established to avoid health risks from this pathogen.
authors.affiliation: Universidad San Pablo CEU, Laboratorio de Parasitología, Facultad de Farmacia, Urbanización Montepríncipe, CP 28668 Boadilla del Monte, Madrid, Spain. ferizqui@ceu.es
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Izquierdo
authors.forename: José Antonio
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Castro Hermida
authors.forename: Soledad
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fenoy
authors.forename: Mercedes
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mezo
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: González-Warleta
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: del Aguila
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005618:Fresh Water / Q000469:parasitology*; D006801:Humans; D016814:Microsporidia / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014881:Water Supply / Q000032:analysis*