{"512531":{"#nid":"512531","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Bacterial Biofilms in Hospital Water Pipes May Show Pathogenic Properties","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe human microbiome, a diverse collection of microorganisms living inside us and on our skin, has attracted considerable attention for its role in a broad range of human health issues. Now, researchers are discovering that the built environment also has a microbiome, which includes a community of potentially-pathogenic bacteria living inside water supply pipes.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA paper published March 11 in the journal \u003Cem\u003EApplied and Environmental Microbiology\u003C\/em\u003E describes microbial communities found in shower hoses at a major U.S. hospital. The study documented bacteria \u2013 and related genes \u2013 using cutting-edge metagenomic techniques that allow the characterization of organisms that cannot be detected using traditional culture-based microbiology assays.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EResearchers from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Georgia Institute of Technology collaborated to study these biofilm communities, but can\u2019t say yet if these bacteria pose a threat to hospital patients. But because some of the genes could indicate pathogenic characteristics \u2013 such as resistance to antibiotics \u2013 the researchers want to learn more about the potential health implications, and whether other buildings house similar biofilms. Antibiotic resistance is a public health emerging priority identified by the World Health Organization, which in 2015 released a global action plan to address the problem.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe can say confidently that if pathogens are in there, they are not there in very high abundance,\u201d said \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.cee.gatech.edu\/people\/Faculty\/711\/overview\u0022\u003EKostas Konstantinidis\u003C\/a\u003E, an associate professor in the \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.cee.gatech\/edu\/\u0022\u003ESchool of Civil and Environmental Engineering\u003C\/a\u003E at Georgia Tech. \u201cBut the organisms that we detected as abundant in these biofilms appear to have characteristics that could be of interest because they are related to some bacteria that are opportunistic pathogens that could pose a threat, especially to immunocompromised hospital patients\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe study began by culturing bacteria from 40 shower hoses removed from individual hospital rooms by EPA researchers. Nucleic acid was extracted from five of the shower hoses and processed using next-generation sequencing technology. The sequencing data was sent to Georgia Tech, where doctoral student Maria Juliana Soto-Gir\u00f3n matched the sequences against known bacteria \u2013 and genes that have known effects, such as virulence and antibiotic resistance.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe microbiome study found an abundant population of bacteria that the researchers believe are novel \u201c\u003Cem\u003EMycobacterium\u003C\/em\u003E-like\u201d species not described previously, closely related to \u003Cem\u003EMycobacterium rhodesiae\u003C\/em\u003E and \u003Cem\u003EMycobacterium tusciae\u003C\/em\u003E. Traditional culture-based methods instead identified organisms affiliated with \u003Cem\u003EProteobacteria\u003C\/em\u003E \u2013 such as members of the genera \u003Cem\u003ESphingomonas\u003C\/em\u003E, \u003Cem\u003EBlastomonas\u003C\/em\u003E and \u003Cem\u003EPorphyrobacter\u003C\/em\u003E \u2013 as the most abundant.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe biofilm communities harbored genes related to disinfectant tolerance, which constituted 2.3 percent of the total annotated proteins \u2013 and a lower abundance of virulence determinants related to colonization and evasion of the host immune system. Additionally, genes potentially conferring resistance to beta-lactam, aminoglycoside, amphenicol and quinolone antibiotics were identified. The frequency of these genes was higher than the frequency found in Lake Lanier, a natural freshwater ecosystem that has been studied by the Georgia Tech research team, suggesting that the drinking water pipe environments merit closer attention.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe research grew out of an EPA research project to understand the issues of drinking water systems and building microbiomes \u2013 the collection of microbes found in such structures. While biofilms are common in building water pipes, this study generated the most metagenomic data so far for the organisms living in these water systems. Additionally, the researchers analyzed 94 partial genomes of isolated biofilm bacteria, including some that had not been reported before, though they are related to previously-characterized microorganisms.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThough well-known pathogens weren\u2019t seen in abundance, the presence of genes for antibiotic resistance, resistance to water disinfectants and virulence raises concerns because bacteria can share such genes to potentially become more significant health threats.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIf they have a core of genes, they may be receptive to acquiring other genes that will render these microorganisms more problematic,\u0022 said Jorge Santo Domingo, a microbial ecologist with the EPA\u2019s Office of Research and Development in Cincinnati. \u201cThese organisms are very good at living in difficult environmental conditions with limited carbon sources, so fighting them could become a challenging proposition. We don\u2019t know if they constitute a problem, but we certainly want to find out.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe analysis of material taken from the shower hoses is only a preliminary study, and much more research will be needed. Santo Domingo compared the findings to a \u201ccheck engine\u201d light in an automobile. The warning doesn\u2019t necessarily indicate an immediate problem, though it does show that attention \u2013 and potential action \u2013 may be required.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cSome of the identified genes are the kind that we\u2019d want to keep an eye on,\u201d he explained. \u201cWe would like to conduct more studies to gather data on the dynamics of these bacterial groups, but the fact that these genes are present indicates that more studies should be done.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe potential clinical significance of the bacteria needs to studied, and any public health impacts understood, he added. Other questions include whether similar biofilms would be found in other hospitals, whether biofilms differ among facilities, how monitoring should be done \u2013 and whether shower heads and hoses should be replaced on a regular basis.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe work could also provide a foundation for new research into the types of water disinfection used in hospitals. The chlorine compounds used in public drinking water may not provide sufficient protection for water supplies in these facilities. The sequencing data and bioinformatics analyses will help identify genetic markers that could be used to monitor these genes and determine their public health relevance.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhile Konstantinidis and his research group have been studying microbes in natural ecosystems such as Lake Lanier in Georgia, this represents their first metagenome analysis of microbial communities in the built environment. They are hopeful that the technique, which is still in the research and development stage, can help understand issues involving microbial populations and their virulence potential in buildings where humans spend most of their time.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cMetagenomics gives you a more complete and quantitative picture of what microorganisms are there and how abundant they are,\u201d he said. \u201cThis shows that traditional culture methods are limited in what they can detect, and that they can often provide a biased look at what is there.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to those already mentioned, the paper\u2019s authors included Luis Rodriguez and Chengwei Luo from Georgia Tech, Michael Elk and Hodon Ryu from Pegasus, Inc., and Jill Hoelle from the EPA.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECITATION\u003C\/strong\u003E: Maria J. Soto-Gir\u00f3n, et al., \u201cCharacterization of biofilms developing on hospital shower hoses and implications for nosocomial infections,\u201d (Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 2016).\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EResearch News\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EGeorgia Institute of Technology\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E177 North Avenue\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAtlanta, Georgia 30332-0181 USA\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMedia Relations Contact\u003C\/strong\u003E: John Toon (\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jtoon@gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ejtoon@gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E) (404-894-6986).\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWriter\u003C\/strong\u003E: John Toon\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EResearchers have described microbial communities found in shower hoses at a major U.S. hospital. The study documented bacteria \u2013 and related genes \u2013 using cutting-edge metagenomic techniques that allow the characterization of organisms that cannot be detected using traditional culture-based microbiology assays.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Researchers have described microbial communities found in shower hoses at a major U.S. hospital."}],"uid":"27303","created_gmt":"2016-03-11 16:15:16","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:21:05","author":"John Toon","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2016-03-11T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2016-03-11T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"512491":{"id":"512491","type":"image","title":"Hospital Biofilms1","body":null,"created":"1458923712","gmt_created":"2016-03-25 16:35:12","changed":"1475895275","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:54:35","alt":"Hospital Biofilms1","file":{"fid":"205021","name":"biofilm_2871.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/biofilm_2871_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/biofilm_2871_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1505063,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/biofilm_2871_0.jpg?itok=6eTWLkQD"}},"512501":{"id":"512501","type":"image","title":"Hospital Biofilm","body":null,"created":"1458923712","gmt_created":"2016-03-25 16:35:12","changed":"1475895275","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:54:35","alt":"Hospital Biofilm","file":{"fid":"205022","name":"biofilm.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/biofilm_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/biofilm_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":3829492,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/biofilm_0.jpg?itok=5OarZfsi"}},"512511":{"id":"512511","type":"image","title":"Hospital Biofilms2","body":null,"created":"1458923712","gmt_created":"2016-03-25 16:35:12","changed":"1475895275","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:54:35","alt":"Hospital Biofilms2","file":{"fid":"205023","name":"biofilm_2861.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/biofilm_2861_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/biofilm_2861_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1516346,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/biofilm_2861_0.jpg?itok=tlGAhPZ2"}}},"media_ids":["512491","512501","512511"],"groups":[{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"}],"categories":[{"id":"154","name":"Environment"},{"id":"146","name":"Life Sciences and Biology"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"7077","name":"bacteria"},{"id":"170021","name":"biofilms"},{"id":"170022","name":"building microbiome"},{"id":"12758","name":"Kostas Konstantinidis"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39441","name":"Bioengineering and Bioscience"},{"id":"39531","name":"Energy and Sustainable Infrastructure"}],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71911","name":"Earth and Environment"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EJohn Toon\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EResearch News\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jtoon@gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ejtoon@gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E(404) 894-6986\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["jtoon@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}