Contribution of natural microbial communities to the elimination of pathogenic viruses from aquatic environments

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Pathogenic viruses regularly arrive in natural aquatic environments. Here, they are subject to retardation and decay by a number of abiotic processes such as sorption and radiation. Pathogenic viruses, however, get also involved as extrinsic participators in the microbial food web. The fate of pathogenic viruses with respect to microbial antagonism is not known so far. The proposed project intents to investigate the role of individual groups of microorganisms in aquatic environments in the elimination of pathogenic viruses. Focus will be on protozoan grazing on viruses, as well as direct and indirect effects of bacterial activity to virus elimination. The work will for the first time also consider the distribution of pathogenic viruses in the open water column as well as in sediment porewater and viruses attached to the sediment matrix. Starting with well controlled lab experiments using pure cultures of protozoa, bacteria, and reference viruses, we will subsequently conduct field studies at close to natural conditions in an artificial stream system and later in the bank infiltration site at the UBA test site (Berlin-Marienfelde). Hot spots of microbially induced virus elimination will be identified in the transition zone between surface water and groundwater and related to environmental factors. In face of global change scenarios, the information obtained may help to better protect and manage aquatic ecosystems, drinking water resources and human health.