Bacteria present in water samples taken on a weekly basis, from June 2004 through June 2005, from three streams, were cultured on Coliscan® Easygel® agar plates. Colonies representative of a variety of colors and morphologies were subjected to amplification and sequencing of a 1000–1100 nt portion of the 16S rRNA gene. A total of 528 colonies were sequenced; these categorized into 26 genera and 78 species. Of 175 dark blue/purple colonies presumed to be E. coli, sequence analysis indicated that 45 (25%) were actually other genera. For the urban stream Gwynns Falls Gwynns Run, E. coli was the most common genus/species encountered, followed by Klebsiella and Aeromonas. For Pond Branch, a stream located in a forested watershed, it was Serratia, followed by Yersinia and Aeromonas. For McDonogh (MCDN), a stream associated with Zea mays (corn) row crop agriculture, E. coli was the most frequently isolated genus/species, followed by Aeromonas and Enterobacter. ERIC-PCR genotyping of isolates from the most prevalent genera/species, indicated a high degree of diversity within-stream for E. coli and K. pneumoniae. Conversely, genotyping of Y. enterocolitica isolates indicated that some were shared between different streams.
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
Research Article|
March 01 2007
Identification of culturable stream water bacteria from urban, agricultural, and forested watersheds using 16S rRNA gene sequencing
Kenneth T. Belt;
Kenneth T. Belt
1USDA Forest Service, UMBC CUERE/BES LTER, Baltimore, MD 21227, USA
Search for other works by this author on:
Christina Hohn;
Christina Hohn
2USDA-ARS, Beltsville Maryland 20705, USA
Search for other works by this author on:
Aiah Gbakima;
Aiah Gbakima
3Morgan State University, Baltimore Maryland 21251, USA
Search for other works by this author on:
James A. Higgins
4USDA – ARS, Bldg 173, 10300 Baltimore Blvd Beltsville MD 20705, USA
Tel.: 301-504-6443 Fax: 301-504-6608; E-mail: [email protected]
Search for other works by this author on:
J Water Health (2007) 5 (3): 395–406.
Citation
Kenneth T. Belt, Christina Hohn, Aiah Gbakima, James A. Higgins; Identification of culturable stream water bacteria from urban, agricultural, and forested watersheds using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. J Water Health 1 September 2007; 5 (3): 395–406. doi: https://doi.org/10.2166/wh.2007.035
Download citation file: