Browsing by Author "Meyer, Wieland"
Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- Fungal Contaminants in Drinking Water Regulation? A Tale of Ecology, Exposure, Purification and Clinical RelevancePublication . Babič, Monika; Gunde-Cimerman, Nina; Vargha, Márta; Tischner, Zsófia; Magyar, Donát; Veríssimo, Cristina; Sabino, Raquel; Viegas, Carla; Meyer, Wieland; Brandão, JoãoMicrobiological drinking water safety is traditionally monitored mainly by bacterial parameters that indicate faecal contamination. These parameters correlate with gastro-intestinal illness, despite the fact that viral agents, resulting from faecal contamination, are usually the cause. This leaves behind microbes that can cause illness other than gastro-intestinal and several emerging pathogens, disregarding non-endemic microbial contaminants and those with recent pathogenic activity reported. This white paper focuses on one group of contaminants known to cause allergies, opportunistic infections and intoxications: Fungi. It presents a review on their occurrence, ecology and physiology. Additionally, factors contributing to their presence in water distribution systems, as well as their effect on water quality are discussed. Presence of opportunistic and pathogenic fungi in drinking water can pose a health risk to consumers due to daily contact with water, via several exposure points, such as drinking and showering. The clinical relevance and influence on human health of the most common fungal contaminants in drinking water is discussed. Our goal with this paper is to place fungal contaminants on the roadmap of evidence based and emerging threats for drinking water quality safety regulations.
- Knowledge and regulation on fungal contamination of sand and water: progress report and perspectivesPublication . Gangneux, Jean-Pierre; Brandão, João; Segal, Ester; Arikan-Akdagli, Sevtap; Barac, Aleksandra; Bertout, Sébastien; Bostanaru, Andra-Cristina; Brito, Sara; Bull, Michelle; Çerikçioğlu, Nilgün; Chapman, Belinda; Delhaes, Laurence; Efstratiou, Maria; Ergin, Çagri; Frenkel, Michael; Guerra, Alexis Danielle; Gitto, Aurora; Gonçalves, Cláudia Isabel; Guegan, Hélène; Gunde-Cimerman, Nina; Güran, Mümtaz; Irinyi, Laszlo; Jiang, Sunny; Jonikaitė, Egle; Jozić, Slaven; Kataržytė, Marija; Klingspor, Lena; Mares, Mihai; Meijer, Wim; Melchers, Willem; Meletiadis, Joseph; Meyer, Wieland; Nastasa, Valentin; Novak-Babič, Monika; Ogunc, Dilara; Ozhak, Betil; Prigitano, Anna; Ranque, Stéphane; Richardson, Malcolm; Roger, Frédéric; Rusu, Raluca-Oana; Sabino, Raquel; Sampaio, Ana; Silva, Susana; Solo-gabriele, Helena; Stephens, Jayne; Tehupeiory-Kooreman, Marlou; Tortorano, Anna-Maria; Velegraki, Aristea; Veríssimo, Cristina; Vukić Lušić, Darija; Wunderlich, GeorgoaFungal flora in coastal/inland beach sand and recreational water is a neglected field of study, despite its potential impact on human health. A joint International Society for Human and Animal Mycology/European Confederation for Medical Mycology (ISHAM/ECMM) working group was formed in 2019 with the task to set up a vast international initiative aimed at studying the fungal contamination of beaches and bathing waters. Here we review the importance of the topic, and list the main results and achievements from 12 scientific publications. Fungal contamination exists at different levels, and the genera most frequently found were Aspergillus spp., Candida spp., Fusarium spp., and Cryptococcus spp., both in sand and in water. A site-blind median was found to be 89 colony-forming units of fungi per gram of sand in coastal/inland freshwaters. This threshold has been used for the sand quality criterion of the blue flag in Portugal. Additionally, our data were considered pivotal and therefore used for the first inclusion of fungi as a biological taxon of interest in water quality and sand monitoring recommendations of the World Health Organization's new guidelines on recreational water quality (Vol.1-Chap7). The findings of the consortium also suggest how environmental conditions (climate, salinity, soil pH, nitrogen, etc.) influence microbial communities in different regions, and that yeast species like Candida glabrata, Clavispora lusitaniae, and Meyerozyma guilliermondii have been identified as potential fungal indicators of fecal contamination. Climate change and natural disasters may affect fungal populations in different environments, and because this is still a field of study under exploration, we also propose to depict the future challenges of research and unmet needs.