Ocean and aerosol microbial communities during coastal water pollution events

Pedro Belda-Ferre, University of California San Diego, Department of Pediatrics, La Jolla, CA, United States, Matthew Pendergraft, University of California San Diego, Chemistry and Biochemistry, La Jolla, CA, United States, Daniel Petras, University of California San Diego, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, United States, Clare Morris, University of California San Diego, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, CA, United States, Brock Mitts, University of California, San Diego, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, La Jolla, CA, United States, Allegra T Aron, UNiversity of California San Diego, United States, Jeremiah Minich, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Marine Biology Research Division, La Jolla, CA, United States, Lihini Aluwihare, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, United States, Pieter Dorrestein, University of California San Diego, Collaborative Mass Spectrometry Innovation Center, La Jolla, CA, United States, Rob Knight, University of California San Diego, Departments of Pediatrics and Computer Science & Engineering, La Jolla, CA, United States and Kimberly A Prather, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, United States
Abstract:
Rain run-off pollution events are common in densely populated areas, with sewage microbial communities being washed into rivers and oceans. With over 2.4 billion people living within 100 km of an oceanic coast, this is becoming an increasing public health concern. Recent studies suggest that some bacteria are preferentially aerosolized from seawater through breaking waves, and aerosols can travel miles inland with favorable winds. Although there are monitoring programs in place to assess ocean water quality, little is known about the aerosolization of microorganisms during pollution events. To further investigate microbial aerosolization from polluted waters, river water, sea water and aerosol samples were collected around storm events in the Tijuana River estuary, San Diego (USA) during the winter and spring of 2019. We performed low biomass 16S rRNA gene sequencing using the KatharoSeq protocol to ensure high sensitivity and low cross-contamination rates. Distinct microbial signatures were detected in polluted river and seawater samples, which correlated with increased Tijuana river flow. Those signatures were also present in aerosol samples, facilitating their dispersal through air. Together, these results suggest that coastal water pollution might have a wider impact to coastal communities than previously anticipated. The methodology applied in this study can be used in future biomonitoring initiatives to track microbial aerosols over coastal communities and to assess the potential public health implications this might have on densely populated coastal regions.
Back to: Human Populations and Influences in the Coastal Zone: Effects on Ocean and Human Health (OHH) IV Posters