TRANSMISSION OF HUMAN PATHOGENIC BACTERIA TO VEGETABLES THROUGH IRRIGATION WATER

Authors

  • Svjetlana Lolić Faculty of Sciences and Mathematics, University of Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  • Biljana Radusin Sopić Faculty of Sciences and Mathematics, University of Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  • Radoslav Dekić Faculty of Sciences and Mathematics, University of Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Keywords:

irrigation water, vegetables, Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica

Abstract

In the last 50 years, there have been several outbreaks of epidemics caused by pathogenic bacteria that have been transmitted by consuming contaminated fresh vegetables. The greatest consequences were caused by an epidemic caused by Escherichia coli O157:H7 from pumpkin, which affected almost 4,000 people in Germany in 2011, over 50 of whom died. Massive poisonings in United States have also been caused by bacteria that have been transmitted through spinach and cantaloupes resulting with 147 people infected and 33 deaths. Listeria outbreak in Australia in 2018 transferred with rockmelont resulted in five deaths. A large number of poisonings have been recorded around the world, which fortunately did not end fatally. In all cases, the diseases were caused by pathogenic bacteria that cannot normally be found at vegetables. It is obvious that that certain types of bacteria that cause diseases in humans can survive for a certain time in environments that do not represent their natural environment, such as different species of vegetables. Since they have to somehow reach agricultural crops, irrigation with untreated water is singled out as one of the possible ways of their transmission. Namely, in the Republic of Srpska (entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina) there are only three facilities for the purification of municipal wastewater: in Bijeljina in the northeast, and in Trebinje and Bileća in the south of the country. In all other cities, municipal waste water is poured directly into watercourses. In rural areas, sewage is poured into septic tanks, through which it is further drained and partially purified reaches the groundwater. In a large number of cases, water from watercourses or wells is used directly for irrigation of vegetable crops. The aim of the conducted research was to determine eventually presence of potentially pathogenic microorganisms Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp. in the water used for irrigation, as well as their possible presence on certain vegetable crops that were irrigated with that water. Sample collection was carried out at 20 small vegetable producers, 10 of which use irrigation water from local wells, and 10 from nearby watercourses. For isolation of bacterial strains from irrigation water and vegetables extract indirect culture methods on specific selective media were used. The collected plant material was previously macerated and submerged in sterile peptone water in order to extract the bacteria. After that, they were inoculated on highly specific nutrient media and the obtained isolates were compared with positive controls. In well water used for irrigation, Salmonella spp. was isolated on two farms, while Escherichia coli was isolated from 4 wells. In watercourses used for irrigation, Escherichia was isolated in all cases, while Salmonella was not isolated in any of them. Bacterium Escheria coli was isolated from spinach and lettuce leaves, tomato, potato tuber and red onion bulbs while Salmonella spp. was isolated from lettuce, tomato, red onion and bell peppers as well. The fact that potentially pathogenic bacteria have been isolated in several different locations on different types of vegetables, including vegetables that are used fresh, is extremely worrying. In order to prevent new outbreaks, it is necessary to determine their origin, respectively the ways of their transmission to agricultural crops, as well as how long they stay viable on them. The conducted research showed that irrigation with untreated water can be one of the ways of transmission of Escherichia to vegetables, while the way of transmission of Salmonella has yet to be determined.

References

CDC-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2020). Outbreak of Salmonella Newport Infections Linked to Onions. https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/newport-07-20/index.html

Eckburg, B. et al. (2005). Diversity of the human intestinal microbial flora. Science 308 (5728): 1635–38.

Greene, S. K., Daly, E. R., Talbot, E. A., Demma, L. J., Holzbauer, N., Patel, N. J., Hill, T. A., Walderhaug, M. A., Hoekstra, R., Lynch, M. F., & Painter, J. A. (2008). Recurrent multistate outbreak of Salmonella Newport associated with tomatoes from contaminated fields, 2005. Epidemiol. Infect. 136, 157–165.

ISO (2017). Horizontalna metoda za otkrivanje, određivanje broja i serotipizaciju Salmonella - Dio 1: Otkrivanje Salmonella spp. (SRPS EN ISO 6579-1:2017). Međunarodna organizacija za standardizaciju, Ženeva, Švajcarska.

Jantsch, J., Chikkaballi, D., & Hensel, M. (2011). Cellular aspects of immunity to intracellular Salmonella enterica. Immunological Reviews. 240 (1): 185–95.

Kljujev, I. (2012). Kontaminacija biljaka patogenim bakterijama iz vode za navodnjavanje. Doktorska disertacija. Univerzitet u Beogradu.

Lolić, S., Dekić, R., Manojlović, M., & Radusin Sopić, B. (2020). Frequency of bacteria Salmonella enterica and Listeria monocytogenes in vegetable in the Republic of Srpska (BiH). Knowledge International Journal, 42(3), 495 - 499.

Madigan, M., Martinko, J., & Brock, T. (2006). Brock Biology of microorganisms (11th ed.). Pearson Prentice Hall, New York.

Maule, A. (2000). Survival of verocytotoxigenic Escherichia coli O157:H7 in soil, water, and on surfaces. Symp. Ser. Soc. Appl. Microbiol. 29:71–78.

Murray, P. (2018). Basic medical microbiology. Elsevier: Philadelphia.

Official Gazette of the Republic of Srpska num. 42 (2001). Regulation on water classification and categorization of watercourses of the Republic of Srpska.

Pachepsky, Y., Shelton, D., McLain, J.E.T., Patel, J., & Mandrell, R.E. (2011). Irrigation waters as a source of pathogenic microorganisms in produce: a review. AdvAgron 113, 71–136.

Shortt, R., Boelee, E., Matsuno, Y., Faubert, G., Madramootoo, C., & Van Der Hoek, W. (2003). Evaluation of thermotolerant coliforms and salinity in the four available water sources of an irrigated region of southern Sri Lanka. Irrig. Drain. 52, 133–146.

Söderström, A. et al. (2008). A large Escherichia coli O157 outbreak in Sweden associated with locally produced lettuce. Foodborne Pathog. Dis. 5, 339–348.

Thurston-Enriquez, J. A., Watt, P., Dowd, S. E., Enriquez, R., Pepper, I. L., & Gerba, C. P. (2002). Detection of protozoan parasites and microsporidia in irrigation waters used for crop production. J. Food Prot. 65, 378–382.

Vlada Republike Srpske (2015). Strategija integralnog upravljanja vodama Republike Srpske 2015-2024.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15633699/, 2023

https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1535676016652231, 2023

Downloads

Published

2023-03-31

How to Cite

Lolić, S., Radusin Sopić, B., & Dekić, R. (2023). TRANSMISSION OF HUMAN PATHOGENIC BACTERIA TO VEGETABLES THROUGH IRRIGATION WATER. KNOWLEDGE - International Journal , 57(3), 379–383. Retrieved from https://ikm.mk/ojs/index.php/kij/article/view/6063