UNS: Dynamics of Microbial Agents in Sewer Systems and Wet Weather Flow

由于污水处理系统的设计是为了灭活传染性病原体，疾病控制中心（CDC）允许传染病患者的尿液和粪便进入卫生下水道。然而，在潮湿的天气，下水道溢流在美国是一个普遍存在的问题。下水道固体是城市潮湿天气流污染的主要来源。因此，下水道不仅是污水的管道，而且是复杂的生物反应器：微生物可以腐烂，生长，并在运输过程中减少其运输。令人惊讶的是，人们对下水道沉积物的生物过程及其对微生物剂（即病原体和耐抗生素细菌）命运的影响知之甚少，而这正是本拟议项目的目标。为了对溢流事件进行定量微生物风险评估，优化下水道维护计划，设计潮湿天气流处理，有必要了解影响下水道固体和生物膜中微生物剂（这里定义为病原体和抗生素耐药细菌）存活的过程。在下水道溢流的情况下尤其如此，但为了利用下水道样本跟踪人类疾病的发病率，这一点也很重要。下水道监测是一种有用的流行病学工具，它将受益于对微生物在下水道系统中传播过程中命运的更好理解。将进行实地调查，以确定驱动下水道沉积物微生物质量的生化因素以及废水和下水道沉积物中微生物剂的相对负荷。接下来，将进行一个受控的模拟下水道实验，以确定下水道沉积物中微生物剂的命运，以提供下水道沉积物和生物膜中的动力学数据。最后，将对一个联合下水道溢水（CSO）事件进行采样，以表征潮湿天气流事件中微生物剂的通量。这项实地研究将利用下水道沉积物的微生物特征来区分下水道固体和废水中微生物剂的通量。高通量、基于生存力的分子分析将应用于本研究，并允许对病原体进行敏感检测，并确定活的和非活的抗生素抗性基因负荷的动态。这种理解对于确定下水道沉积物中抗生素耐药基因释放到环境中所造成的风险至关重要。总的来说，拟议的项目将为了解下水道和潮湿天气中微生物剂的命运提供关键的见解。该研究方法扩展了生物分子分析方法，以了解下水道沉积物中微生物剂的命运。所收集的关于推动下水道中病原体扩散和抗生素耐药性的环境因素的定量数据将为定量微生物风险评估提供信息，改进潮湿天气污染事件的模型，并有助于制定缓解战略。特别令人感兴趣的是，在这里获得的关于下水道内生物过程的知识可能应用于改进下水道监测的实施，以跟踪传染病。下水道流行病学方法目前受到限制，因为我们缺乏对关键环境因素和生化过程的理解，这些因素和生化过程驱动着下水道中微生物剂的命运。因此，这项工作不仅有可能改变我们在潮湿天气中保护公众健康的能力，也有可能改变我们在下水道基质中进行公共卫生监测的能力。项目目标：(1)招收和留住工科本科女生；(2)提高科学素养。教育材料和学习模块将在STEM向女童子军（6-12年级）和罗格斯日（Rutgers Day）的推广活动中开发和展示，每两年一次。将建立一个项目网站，以提高公众的科学素养，扩大公众对公民社会组织问题的认识。

1510461FahrenfeldSince wastewater treatment systems are designed to inactivate infectious agents, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) allows urine and fecal matter from patients with infectious diseases to enter sanitary sewers. However, sewer overflows during wet weather flow are a widespread issue in the US. Sewer solids are a major contributor to pollution during urban wet weather flows. Therefore, sewers are not merely a conduit for wastewater, but rather, complex bioreactors: microorganisms can decay, grow, and have their transport attenuated during conveyance. Surprisingly little is known about the biological processes which occur the sewer deposits and their effect on the fate of microbial agents (i.e., pathogens and antibiotic resistant bacteria) and that is the objective of this proposed project. To perform Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment for overflow events, optimize sewer maintenance plans, and design wet weather flow treatment, it is necessary to understand the processes affecting the survival of microbial agents (here defined as pathogens and antibiotic resistant bacteria) in sewer solids and biofilms. This is especially true in the case of sewer overflows, but is also important in order to use sewer samples for tracking the incidence of human disease. Sewer surveillance is a useful tool for epidemiology that would benefit from improved understanding of the fate of microbial agents during conveyance in sewer systems. A field survey will be performed to determine the biochemical factors driving the microbial quality of sewer deposits and the relative loading of microbial agents in wastewater and sewer deposits. Next, a controlled simulated sewer experiment will be performed to determine the fate of microbial agents in sewer deposits to provide kinetic data in sewer sediments and biofilm. Finally, a combined sewer overflow (CSO) event will be sampled to characterize the flux of the microbial agents during wet weather flow events. This field study will use the microbial signatures of sewer sediments developed to differentiate between the flux of microbial agents from sewer solids and wastewater. High-throughput, viability-based molecular assays will be applied in this study and allow for sensitive detection of pathogens and the determination of the dynamics of the viable and non-viable antibiotic resistance gene loads. This understanding is essential for determining the risk posed by antibiotic resistant genes in sewer sediments upon release in the environment. Overall, the proposed project will provide critical insight into the fate of microbial agents in sewers and during wet weather flow. The research approach extends biomolecular analytical methods for understanding the fate of microbial agents in sewer deposits. The quantitative data gathered on the environmental factors driving the proliferation of pathogen and antibiotic resistance in sewers will inform quantitative microbial risk assessment, improve models of wet weather pollution events, and aid in the development of mitigation strategies. Of particular interest is the potential application of the knowledge gained here on in-sewer biological processes for improved implementation of sewer surveillance for tracking infectious disease. Sewer epidemiological methods are currently limited by our lack of understanding of critical environmental factors and biochemical processes driving the fate of microbial agents in sewers. Therefore, this work has the potential to transform not only our ability to protect public health during wet weather flow, but also our ability to perform public health surveillance in the sewer matrix. The project targets: (1) recruiting and retaining undergraduate women students in engineering; and, (2) improving scientific literacy. Educational materials and learning modules will be developed and presented biannually in STEM outreach to Girl Scouts (grades 6-12) and at Rutgers Day. A project website will be created to improve public scientific literacy and broaden public knowledge of CSO issues.