Ecological analyses of mycobacteria in showerhead biofilms and their relevance to human health
Ecological analyses of mycobacteria in showerhead biofilms and their relevance to human health
Abstract Bacteria within the genus Mycobacterium can be abundant in showerheads, and the inhalation of aerosolized mycobacteria while showering has been implicated as a mode of transmission in nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) lung infections. Despite their importance, the diversity, distributions, and environmental predictors of showerhead-associated mycobacteria remain largely unresolved. To address these knowledge gaps, we worked with citizen scientists to collect showerhead biofilm samples and associated water chemistry data from 656 households located across the U.S. and Europe. Our cultivation-independent analyses revealed that the genus Mycobacterium was consistently the most abundant genus of bacteria detected in residential showerheads, yet mycobacterial diversity and abundances were highly variable. Mycobacteria were far more abundant, on average, in showerheads receiving municipal versus well water, and in U.S. households as compared to European households, patterns that are likely driven by differences in the use of chlorine disinfectants. Moreover, we found that water source, water chemistry, and household location also influenced the prevalence of specific mycobacterial lineages detected in showerheads. We identified geographic regions within the U.S. where showerheads have particularly high abundances of potentially pathogenic lineages of mycobacteria and these ‘hot spots’ generally overlapped with those regions where NTM lung disease is most prevalent. Together these results emphasize the public health relevance of mycobacteria in showerhead biofilms. They further demonstrate that mycobacterial distributions in showerhead biofilms are often predictable from household location and water chemistry, knowledge that advances our understanding of NTM transmission dynamics and the development of strategies to reduce exposures to these emerging pathogens.
Webster Tara M.、Gebert Matthew J.、Honda Jennifer R.、Dunn Robert R.、Fierer Noah、Oliverio Angela M.、Chan Edward D.、Nichols Lauren M.、Adjemian Jennifer、Delgado-Baquerizo Manuel
Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of ColoradoCooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of ColoradoDepartment of Biomedical Research, Center for Genes, Environment, and Health, National Jewish HealthDepartment of Applied Ecology, North Carolina State University||Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of CopenhagenCooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado||Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of ColoradoCooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado||Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of ColoradoDepartment of Medicine, National Jewish Health||Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care Medicine, University of Colorado Denver, Anschutz Medical Campus||Denver Veterans Affairs Medical CenterDepartment of Applied Ecology, North Carolina State UniversityNational Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases||United States Public Health Service, Commissioned CorpsCooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado||Departamento de Biolog¨aa y Geolog¨aa, F¨asica y Qu¨amica Inorg¨￠nica, Escuela Superior de Ciencias Experimentales y Tecnolog¨aa, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos
微生物学环境科学基础理论预防医学
Mycobacteriummycobacterianontuberculous mycobacterial infectionsNTM lung diseaseplumbing biofilms
Webster Tara M.,Gebert Matthew J.,Honda Jennifer R.,Dunn Robert R.,Fierer Noah,Oliverio Angela M.,Chan Edward D.,Nichols Lauren M.,Adjemian Jennifer,Delgado-Baquerizo Manuel.Ecological analyses of mycobacteria in showerhead biofilms and their relevance to human health[EB/OL].(2025-03-28)[2025-05-11].https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/366088.点此复制
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