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  • Bacteroides spp. and traditional fecal indicator bacteria in water quality assessment – An integrated approach for hydric resources management in urban centers
    Publication . Teixeira, Pedro; Dias, Deodália; Costa, Sílvia; Brown, Bárbara; Silva, Susana; Valério, Elisabete
    As part of a sustainable water resources management, the Lisbon municipality identified groundwater and treated wastewater use increase as two opportunities for better and sustainable water use, with natural safeguard for public health as a priority. In this context, the aim of our research was to assess the suitability of the human-associated marker gene Bacteroides HF183 and the cattle feces-associated CowM2, in routine water quality monitoring as indicators for water use and reuse, providing a tool to more accurately assess public health risks. To this intent, Real-Time quantitative PCR was used for detection of human-associated marker gene Bacteroides HF183 and the bovine-associated CowM2, in a total of 67 samples - groundwater and wastewater at three different treatment stages of a Waste Water Treatment Plant, in Lisbon. HF183 marker gene was detected in treated and untreated wastewater samples, with significant concentration reductions from untreated (6,07 E+07 copies/mL) to secondary treated effluent (1,86 E+05 copies/mL) and a further decrease in tertiary treatment (5,74 E+04 copies/mL). In groundwater samples, this marker was also detected in concentrations ranging from 2,63 E+02 copies/mL to 2,24 E+03 copies/mL. CowM2 marker gene on the other hand was only detected in wastewater samples, with concentrations ranging from 2,47 E+02 copies/mL to 1,17 E+04 copies/mL. Our research indicates that the use of Bacteroides spp. in association with traditional fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) is advantageous for water managing entities in urban settings, such as Lisbon, were drainage system failures may occur. An integrated approach thus provides crucial and more adequate information towards mitigation and correction measures when fecal contamination is detected in environmental waters.
    2020-10-01Journal article Open access Show more
  • Candida auris: emergência recente de um fungo patogénico multirresistente
    Publication . Antunes, Francisco; Veríssimo, Cristina; Ayres Pereira, Álvaro; Sabino, Raquel
    Candida auris foi descrita pela primeira vez em 2009, como uma espécie distinta das outras leveduras do género Candida. Este fungo é difícil de se distinguir de outras espécies com que se correlaciona, sendo, atualmente, aconselhada a confirmação da sua identificação por laboratórios de referência. Esta levedura tem a capacidade de causar infeções invasivas, podendo ser resistente às três classes de antifúngicos, sendo a mortalidade elevada. Candida auris tem sido detetada em vários países do Mundo, incluindo alguns países da Europa, tais como Reino Unido e Espanha. Até à data, em Portugal, não há registo de qualquer caso de infeção/colonização por Candida auris. Esta espécie pode sobreviver no ambiente durante várias semanas e uma vez introduzida no ambiente hospitalar, o risco de transmissão é elevado, obrigando à implementação de medidas rigorosas de controlo da infeção, por forma a prevenir a transmissão. Este artigo pretende dar a conhecer e discutir a problemática da emergência deste fungo e as suas eventuais consequências.
    2020-10-01Journal article Open access Show more