Fatty Acid Methyl Ester Profiles of Escherichia Coli and Enterococci for Microbial Source Tracking

Microbial contamination is one of the major water quality issues with pathogens associated with fecal pollution affecting many water environments in the U.S. and around the world. The objective of this study is to investigate the host-specific differences in fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) profiles of Escherichia coli and Enterococci for the purpose of predicting sources of microbial pollution in water environments.

This project is developing a FAME database of approximately 1,500 isolates of E. coli and Enterococci from possible sources of microbial contamination including human, livestock, and wildlife. The E. coli and Enterococci isolates cultured from water environments affected by microbial contamination will be compared to the known-host library for predicting their host origins. It is expected that this new technology will provide a reliable, economical, and effective means of sources identification for microbial pollution and thus contribute significantly to source water protection efforts.

This research is being conducted by Dr. Metin Duran, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Villanova University.