# Presentation: 126613

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKINGUS EPA GMPPolicy Review Board MeetingDecember 12, 2002New Orleans, LAR.D. Ellender, Shiao Wang, Bob MiddlebrooksD. Jay Grimes, Dawn RebarchikThe University of Southern Mississippi

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

- National Focus
- (What is happening in the United States?)
- Mississippi Focus
- (What is happening in Mississippi/USM?)
- What will BST mean in the future?
- (What the principal questions related to this technology?
- (How can we improve BST?
- (How can the USEPA GMP help in this effort?)

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKINGA critical need for States bordering the Gulf of Mexico

- A National Thrust:
- 	The Problem
- 		Animal origin of fecal pollution of water
- 	The Need
- 		Identify methods & indicators
- 		Define local, State, Regional and national value
- 	The Solution
- 		Effective Bacterial Source Tracking Databases
- Specific  Concerns:
- 		TMDL surveys
- 		Beach Closing
- 		Effect on Economic Development
- 		Effect on Agricultural Activities
- 		Health of Population

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKINGPoint Sources

- Dairy Farming

- Defined Wildlife population

- Municipal Waste

- Industrial Waste

- Industrial Waste

- Poultry Operations

- Aquaculture

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKINGNon-Point Sources

- Shore Birds

- Marine Fish

- Sediments

- Plant Matter

- Wild Animals

- Migrating Birds

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING - Needs

**Standard coliform measures cannot determine the source of fecal pollution of Coastal waters **
**accurate risk assessment, effective remediation and valid TMDL analysis**
**Unknown but credible economic impact**
**As the coast population grows the likelihood of closures increases.  Need to pinpoint sources.**
**Evaluate relationships: indicator organisms are not  confined to warm bloodied animals but are found in plants, invertebrates, and numerous other sources. **

**FC**
****
** ****EC/EN**
****
**EC/EN **
**from **
**specific animal**

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING - Benefits

_**Define the animal source**_** of pollution of coastal waters**
**Availability of **_**new regulatory information**_** to be used by state and federal agencies during cases in which counts of indicator bacteria are insufficient or unable to determine the source of pollution**
**Allow regulatory agencies data representative of the level of contamination, the animal population involved, and the ability to **_**develop remedial measures**_** to decrease contamination**
**Create a relationship of database to larger regional/ watershed projects and to the efforts of the state to define watersheds that affect coastal water quality**

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING - Agencies

**Agencies Interest is Extensive**
- US EPA
- USEPA GMP
- USGS
- USDA
- NIEH
- State Departments of Agriculture
- State Departments of Environmental Quality
- State Departments of Marine Resources
- State Departments of Health
- State Departments of Wildlife and Fisheries
- Harrison County Sand Beach Authority
- Southern California Coastal Water Resources Project Authority (Sccwrpa)

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

- Southern California Coastal Water Resources Authority
- Began as Regional study
- First National study (on going)
- Focus on methods and library value
- Multi-University project
- Need for Gulf Wide Initiative  (New GMP initiative at USM)
- Similar environments
- Increasing Populations
- Waters are threatened
- Excellent area of study
- Expandable to all coastal states

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

## Bacterial Source Tracking  - Methods

**Bacterial Source Tracking  - Methods**

**Mechanisms of Bacterial Source Tracking**
**Ribotyping, PCR (rep, ERIC, BOX)**
**RAPD,  Pulse Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE)**
**Antibiotic Resistance Analysis**
**Coliphage tracking, Bacteroides analysis**
**Enterotoxin genes as biomarkers**
**Enterovirus and Adenovirus isolation**
**Southern Calif. Coastal Water Research Project**
**	****Testing methods of source tracking**
**	****Comparing indicator organisms**
**	****Examining database analysis**

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

- The Mississippi/USM Initiative:
- Build a library of animal samples and isolates
- Focus on Animals most likely to affect Mississippi waters
- Utilize the most important indicator species
- Fingerprint isolates using the best methods
- Reliability
- Statistically significant measures
- Apply the best analysis software
- Test the protocols with blind known isolates
- Refine the protocols as necessary
- Apply the methods to unknown samples from Mississippi watersheds
- USM participation in the National Sccwrpa study

***USM Investigators***
**R.D. Ellender, Shiao Wang, Bob Middlebrooks**
**Dawn Rebarchik, D. Jay Grimes**
***Collaborators/Interested Partners***
**USEPA Gulf of Mexico Program (F)**
**MS Department of Agriculture (F)(P)**
**MS Department of Environmental Quality (F)(P)**
**NOAA Coastal Assistance Impact Program (F)**
**Southern California Coastal Water Resources Authority (F)**
** ****MS Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks (S)**
**MS Department of Marine Resources(P)**
**MS Department of Health**
**	****F funding; P pending, S samples**

- BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

- Sample collection initiated September 2001
**983** samples collected 9/01-11/02
- E. coli and Enterococcus Isolates collected same period
**4721** isolates in database; approx. =#s of EC&EN
- Samples from 30 different animals; 2 composite sample
- Approximately 70% of our samples are from humans,
- cow, deer and chickens.

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

**DNA Fingerprinting**
***repPCR, BOX-PCR  and Pulse Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE)***
***ARA analysis***** **
**Cluster Analysis**

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

***Archive*****: Samples and isolates into FBS/10% DMSO**
***Bacterial Isolation:***
**E.coli: mTEC modified  44.5********C;  Enterococci: mEI agar; 41********C**
**Transfer colonies to BHI broth tube and archive **
***DNA Analysis***
***Whole cells washed. PCR – DNA amplified followed by gel***
*** ******analysis;  PFGE – DNA digested  using restriction enzymes ***
***followed by gel analysis and documentation (pic file).***
***Cluster Analysis:  Applied Maths’s BioNumerics***

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

******  ****Gel Fingerprint**
**                       ******
** ****Digitize isolate band pattern**
**                       ******
**  ****Identify/Confirm bands**
**                       ******
**   ****Place band data into                BioNumerics**
**                       ******
** ****Compare Isolates using statistical**
**   ****strategies (dendograms; cluster **
**   ****analysis)**
****

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

- To view this and other BST databases :
**http://www.quickbase.com;  register;  shiao.wang@usm.edu  ;  request permission to view site**

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

- Jackknife Analysis
- A type of cluster analysis to determine the stability of defined groups, in this case, *E. coli* or enterococci from known host species.
- DNA fingerprints of  known isolates are compared to entries among the different groups and average similarities calculated. Done for all entries.
- The percentage of cases that entries are identified to the group they are assigned to is a measure of the internal stability of that group.
- The higher the percentage similarity – the more reliable the species assignment.

## Jackknife Analysis  BOX-PCR vs REP-PCR for E. coli

|  | Human | Cow | Deer |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Human | 14 % | 37 % | 49 % |
| Cow | 0 % | 64 % | 36 % |
| Deer | 0 % | 0 % | 100 % |

- BOX-PCR

- REP-PCR

|  | Human | Cow | Deer |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Human | 75 % | 20 % | 5% |
| Cow | 7 % | 90 % | 3 % |
| Deer | 2 % | 36 % | 62 % |

- Isolates: 155 human, 212 cow and 45 deer.

- Isolates: 115 human, 198 cow and 50 deer.

- BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

- Antibiotic Resistance Analysis (ARA) is also being performed on isolates of E. coli and Enterococci.

|  | Animal | Human |
| --- | --- | --- |
| E. Coli (374) |  |  |
| Animal | 90.1 | 9.9 |
| Human | 0 | 100 |
| Enterococci (686) |  |  |
| Animal  | 95.0 | 5.0 |
| Human | 7.7 | 92.3 |

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

## Bacterial Source Tracking  – SummaryWhat are we going in the next three years?

- Increase the number of database isolates to 15,000 in the next 3 years; move toward a statewide database.
- Integrate GIS into statewide sampling plan
- Utilize the most discriminating fingerprinting method(s) that current research can suggest; be part of the selection process
- Increased collaboration with other state and national researchers; develop the Gulf States BST Initiative

## Bacterial Source Tracking – SummaryWhat is the promise of the technology?

- Excellent chance of success = Automation
- Integrate **Typhoon** DNA analysis
- Automate the PCR reaction
- Develop BST Robotics as a means of reducing manual labor, allowing faster sample processing and data analysis, producing better coverage of the State’s water resources.
- Additional studies in which technology is taken “to the field” to demonstrate the value of the technology.

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

- What might be the role of the USEPA GMP in the future of BST?
- create a research focus in all Gulf States
- Assist formation of the Center for BST research to exist for all Gulf states to serve as a processing center, data repository and analysis for any state wishing to submit a sample – nominal fee – Center to also setup best methods of doing BST for everyone
- Political – Gulf wide BST research network

## BACTERIAL SOURCE TRACKING

- Thank you for this opportunity
- R.D. Ellender, Shiao Wang, Bob Middlebrooks
- D. Jay Grimes, Dawn Rebarchik