Neighborhood diversity of potentially pathogenic bacteria in drinking water from the city of Maroua, Cameroon.
This study examined the spatial variation of potential gastrointestinal pathogens within drinking water sources and home storage containers in four neighborhoods in Maroua, Cameroon. Samples were collected from source (n = 28) and home containers (n = 60) in each study neighborhood. Pathogen contamination was assessed using quantitative polymerase chain reaction, targeting Campylobacter spp., Shiga toxin producing Escherichia coli (virulence genes, stx1 and stx2), and Salmonella spp. Microbial source tracking (MST) targeted three different host-specific markers: HF183 (human), Rum2Bac (ruminant) and GFD (poultry) to identify contamination sources. Staphylococcus aureus and the tetracycline-resistance gene (tetQ) were assessed to measure human hand contact and presence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Pathogen/MST levels were compared statistically and spatially, and neighborhood variation was compared with previously collected demographic information. All the test fecal markers and pathogens (except Arcobacter) were detected in home and source samples. Two neighborhoods tested positive for most pathogens/MST while the others only tested positive for one or two. Spatial variation of pathogens/MST existed between sources, storage containers, and neighborhoods. Differing population density and ethno-economic characteristics could potentially explain variation. Future research should explore the influence of demographic and ethno-economic factors on water quality during microbial risk assessments in urban Africa.
Division of Environmental Health Sciences, College of Public Health, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA E-mail: lee.3598@osu.edu; Present address: Bureau d'information et d'études en santé des populations, Institut national de santé publique du Québec, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Jessica
J
Healy-Profitós
Environmental Science Graduate Program, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
Seungjun
S
Lee
University of Maroua, Maroua, Far North Region, Cameroon.
Arabi
A
Mouhaman
Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
Rebecca
R
Garabed
Environmental Science Graduate Program, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA; Department of Anthropology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA; Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study (NIAS), Wassenaar, The Netherlands.
Mark
M
Moritz
Department of Anthropology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
Barbara
B
Piperata
Division of Environmental Health Sciences, College of Public Health, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA E-mail: lee.3598@osu.edu; Environmental Science Graduate Program, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA; Department of Food Science and Technology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
Jiyoung
J
Lee
D001419:Bacteria; D002163:Cameroon; D002947:Cities; D060766:Drinking Water / Q000382:microbiology*; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D064307:Microbiota; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction
D060766:Drinking Water