Browsing by Author "Solo-Gabriele, Helena"
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- Beach sand and the potential for infectious disease transmission: observations and recommendationsPublication . Solo-Gabriele, Helena; Harwood, Valerie J.; Kay, David; Fujioka, Roger; Sadowsky, Michael; Whitman, Richard; Wither, Andrew; Caniça, Manuela; Carvalho da Fonseca, Rita; Duarte, Aida; Edge, Thomas; Gargaté, Maria João; Gunde-cimerman, Nina; Hagen, Ferry; Mclellan, Sandra; Silva, Alexandra; Novak Babič, Monika; Prada, Susana; Rodrigues, Raquel; Romão, Daniela; Sabino, Raquel; Samson, Robert; Segal, Esther; Staley, Christopher; Taylor, Huw D.; Veríssimo, Cristina; Viegas, Carla; Barroso, Helena; Brandão, JoãoRecent studies suggest that sand can serve as a vehicle for exposure of humans to pathogens at beach sites, resulting in increased health risks. Sampling for microorganisms in sand should be considered for inclusion in regulatory programmes aimed at protecting recreational beach users from infectious disease. In an effort to provide recommendations for sand sampling programmes in the original article, we outlined published guidelines for beach monitoring programmes, currently focused exclusively on measuring microbial levels in water. We also provided background on spatial distribution and temporal characteristics of microbes in sand, as these factors influence sampling programmes. First steps toward establishing a sand sampling programme include identifying appropriate beach sites and use of initial sanitary assessments to refine site selection. A tiered approach is recommended for monitoring. This approach would include the analysis of samples from many sites for faecal indicator organisms and other conventional analytes, while testing for specific pathogens and unconventional indicators is reserved for high-risk sites. Given the diversity of microbes found in sand, studies are urgently needed to identify the most significant aetiological agent of disease and to relate microbial measurements in sand.
- Children and Sand Play: Screening of Potential Harmful Microorganisms in Sandboxes, Parks, and BeachesPublication . Romão, Daniela; Sabino, Raquel; Veríssimo, Cristina; Viegas, Carla; Barroso, Helena; Duarte, Aida; Solo-Gabriele, Helena; Gunde-Cimerman, Nina; Babič, Monika Novak; Marom, Tal; Brandão, JoãoSand serves as a reservoir for potentially pathogenic microorganisms. Children, a high risk group, can acquire infections from sand in sandboxes, recreational areas, and beaches. This paper reviews the microbes in sands, with an emphasis on fungi. Currently monitoring in sandboxes is limited to measurements of Toxocara eggs, although other microbes have been documented. Recreational areas and beach sands have also been found to harbour many types of fungi and microbes. A newly emerging group of fungi of concern include the black yeast-like fungi. After establishing that sand is a reservoir for fungi, clinical manifestations of fungal infections are described with an emphasis on ocular and ear infections. Overall, we recommend environmental studies to develop monitoring strategies for sand and studies to evaluate the link between fungi exposure in sand and human health impacts.
- Children and Sand Play: Screening of Potential Harmful Microorganisms in Sandboxes, Parks, and BeachesPublication . Romão, Daniela; Sabino, Raquel; Veríssimo, Cristina; Marom, Tal; Gunde-Cimmerman, Nina; Novak Babič, Monika; Barroso, Helena; Brandão, João; Solo-Gabriele, Helena; Duarte, Aida; Viegas, CarlaSand serves as a reservoir for potentially pathogenic microorganisms. Children, a high-risk group, can acquire infections from sand in sandboxes, recreational areas, and beaches. This paper reviews the microbes in sands, with an emphasis on fungi. Recreational areas and beach sands have been found to harbor many types of fungi and microbes. A newly emerging group of fungi of concern include the black yeast-like fungi. After establishing that sand is a reservoir for fungi, clinical manifestations of fungal infections are described with an emphasis on ocular and ear infections. Overall, we recommend environmental studies to develop monitoring strategies for sand and studies to evaluate the link between fungi exposure in sand and human health impacts.
- Effects of a Changing Earth on Microbial Dynamics and Human Health Risks in the Water/Sand ContinuumPublication . Weiskerger, Chelsea; Brandão, João; Robinson, Clare; Staley, Chris M.; Kleinheinz, Greg; Nshimyimana, Jean Pierre; Kinzelman, Julie; Nevers, Meredith B; Sadowsky, Michael Jay; Phanikumar, Mantha S; Whitman, Richard; Edge, Tom Andrew; Piggot, Alan; Boehm, Alexandria; Aslan, Asli; Badgley, Brian; Heaney, Christopher; Symonds, Erin; Solo-Gabriele, Helena; Fleisher, Jay; Harwood, Jody; Yamahara, Kevan; Vogel, Laura; Jordão, Luisa; Avolio, Lindsay; Merilainen, Paivi; Pitkanen, Tarja; Warish, Ahmed; Staley, Zachery; Klaus, JamesHumans may be exposed to microbial pathogens at recreational beaches via environmental sources such as water and sand. Although infectious disease risk from exposure to waterborne pathogens, and the fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) used to monitor water quality are active areas of research, sand is a relatively unexplored reservoir of pathogens and FIB. Sand and water at beaches experience continuous exchange of microorganisms, and these habitats provide unique advantages and challenges to pathogen introduction, growth, and persistence. Models of FIB and pathogen fate and transport in beach habitats can aid prediction of the risk of infectious disease from recreational water use, but filling knowledge gaps is necessary for accurate modeling. Climate change predictions estimate an increase in global temperatures of 2.5 – 10° F, sea level rise, and intensification of storms and precipitation in some regions. Other global change factors like population growth and urbanization may exacerbate predicted impacts. These changes can alter microbial population dynamics in beach habitats, and may consequently affect the assumptions and relationships used in numerical models. We discuss literature on microbial population and transport dynamics in sand/beach habitats, with an emphasis on how climate change and other anthropogenic influences (e.g., land use, urbanization) should be considered when using and developing models.
- Microbes in Beach Sands: Integrating Environment, Ecology and Public HealthPublication . Whitman, Richard; Harwood, Valerie; Edge, Thomas; Nevers, Meredith; Byappanahalli, Muruleedhara; Vijayavel, Kannappan; Brandão, João; Sadowsky, Michael; Wheeler Alm, Elizabeth; Crowe, Allan; Ferguson, Donna; Ge, Zhongfu; Halliday, Elizabeth; Kinzelman, Julie; Kleinheinz, Greg; Przybyla-Kelly, Kasia; Staley, Christopher; Staley, Zachery; Solo-Gabriele, HelenaBeach sand is a habitat that supports many microbes, including viruses, bacteria, fungi and protozoa (micropsammon). The apparently inhospitable conditions of beach sand environments belie the thriving communities found there. Physical factors, such as water availability and protection from insolation; biological factors, such as competition, predation, and biofilm formation; and nutrient availability all contribute to the characteristics of the micropsammon. Sand microbial communities include autochthonous species/phylotypes indigenous to the environment. Allochthonous microbes, including fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) and waterborne pathogens, are deposited via waves, runoff, air, or animals. The fate of these microbes ranges from death, to transient persistence and/or replication, to establishment of thriving populations (naturalization) and integration in the autochthonous community. Transport of the micropsammon within the habitat occurs both horizontally across the beach, and vertically from the sand surface and ground water table, as well as at various scales including interstitial flow within sand pores, sediment transport for particle-associated microbes, and the large-scale processes of wave action and terrestrial runoff. The concept of beach sand as a microbial habitat and reservoir of FIB and pathogens has begun to influence our thinking about human health effects associated with sand exposure and recreational water use. A variety of pathogens have been reported from beach sands, and recent epidemiology studies have found some evidence of health risks associated with sand exposure. Persistent or replicating populations of FIB and enteric pathogens have consequences for watershed/beach management strategies and regulatory standards for safe beaches. This review summarizes our understanding of the community structure, ecology, fate, transport, and public health implications of microbes in beach sand. It concludes with recommendations for future work in this vastly under-studied area.
- Microbial Sand Dynamics Influencing FIB Levels at Beaches and Potential Climate Change InfluencesPublication . Solo-Gabriele, Helena; Brandão, João; Whitman, RichardIntroductory presentation to a scientific discussion on the influence of climatic elements on microbial sand contaminants.
- Microbiology of sands and its impact on human healthPublication . Carvalho-Fonseca, Rita; Solo-Gabriele, Helena; Matias-Dias, Carlos; Brandão, JoãoIssue: Recent studies suggest that sand constitute a reservoir potential pathogenic microorganisms at beach sites, sandboxes and recreational areas world-wide, leading to public health threats, health costs and economic losses. Recreational water quality monitoring mainly focus on bacterial indicators that cause gastro-intestinal (GI) illness. Description of the problem: The most recent European bathing water directive indicates that areas surrounding recreational water constitute a possible contamination source. However the directive lacks the 2003 WHO recommendation of sand monitoring, especially in regions where beach users stay mainly on the sand due to low water temperatures. Recent epidemiological studies and data collected during a 5 year beach sand monitoring program of the Portuguese coast support this recommendation.
- Routine screening of harmful microorganisms in beach sands: Implications to public healthPublication . Sabino, Raquel; Rodrigues, Raquel; Costa, Inês; Carneiro, Carla; Cunha, Maria Ana; Duarte, Aida; Faria, Natália; Ferreira, Filipa; Gargaté, Maria João; Júlio, Cláudia; Martins, Maria da Luz; Nevers, Meredith; Oleastro, Mónica; Solo-Gabriele, Helena; Veríssimo, Cristina; Viegas, Carla; Whitman, Richard; Brandão, JoãoBeaches worldwide provide recreational opportunities to hundreds of millions of people and serve as important components of coastal economies. Beach water is often monitored for microbiological quality to detect the presence of indicators of human sewage contamination so as to prevent public health outbreaks associated with water contact. However, growing evidence suggests that beach sand can harbor microbes harmful to human health, often in concentrations greater than the beach water. Currently, there are no standards for monitoring, sampling, analyzing, or managing beach sand quality. In addition to indicator microbes, growing evidence has identified pathogenic bacteria, viruses, and fungi in a variety of beach sands worldwide. The public health threat associated with these populations through direct and indirect contact is unknown because so little research has been conducted relating to health outcomes associated with sand quality. In this manuscript, we present the consensus findings of a workshop of experts convened in Lisbon, Portugal to discuss the current state of knowledge on beach sand microbiological quality and to develop suggestions for standardizing the evaluation of sand at coastal beaches. The expert group at the "Microareias 2012" workshop recommends that 1) beach sand should be screened for a variety of pathogens harmful to human health, and sand monitoring should then be initiated alongside regular water monitoring; 2) sampling and analysis protocols should be standardized to allow proper comparisons among beach locations; and 3) further studies are needed to estimate human health risk with exposure to contaminated beach sand. Much of the manuscript is focused on research specific to Portugal, but similar results have been found elsewhere, and the findings have worldwide implications