Inactivation of Legionella pneumophila harbored by amoebae using a nano-enabled alternative technology: Application and outreach to the Colonias in Texas

军团病是一种由嗜肺军团菌引起的致命肺炎。自1976年以来，这种水传播疾病在美国爆发了几次，新病例一直在以很高的速度增长。当被污染的水滴被吸入（例如，淋浴时）或吸入时，就会发生接触。嗜肺乳杆菌可以由自由生活的单细胞生物（变形虫）庇护，它可以像“特洛伊木马”一样保护嗜肺乳杆菌不受传统消毒的影响，从而增加了军团病传播的风险。本项目旨在开发一种低成本的消毒技术，利用低能量微波辐射灭活饮用水中的嗜肺乳杆菌。这项工作包括在德克萨斯殖民地（即自建社区）开展一项重要的外展项目，这些社区居住着40万低收入人口，其中许多人无法获得高质量的饮用水。这项技术的成功开发有可能确保殖民地和全国的安全饮用水。提出的基于辐照技术的目标是产生界面热量和活性氧（ROS）来灭活阿米巴窝藏的嗜肺乳杆菌。变形虫通过界面加热裂解，释放的嗜肺乳杆菌通过热和活性氧灭活。拟议的研究将利用基础纳米科学来开发一种使用点（POU）和社区规模的水处理技术。拟议研究计划的具体技术目标是：(1)合成、表征和测试利用毫米波的纳米材料，(2)了解利用这种基于毫米波的纳米技术灭活微生物的机制，以及(3)设计两种包含固定化纳米材料的装置，以有效灭活由变形虫窝藏的嗜肺乳杆菌。该研究将利用新型毫瓦光谱转换的科学优势，为德克萨斯殖民地及其他地区的低收入居民提供安全的饮用水。外联活动将在三个学区的小学和殖民地进行（两个在埃尔帕索县，一个在伊达尔戈县，这两个学区都有高度集中的殖民地）。将在学校开展与研究有关的实际教育活动，并将在各殖民地进行水取样和住户调查，以收集有关水质、用水、与水有关的健康问题和社会经济条件的信息。外展是独特的，因为它产生的信息将在设备设计中利用，从而使社会嵌入式技术的发展成为可能。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Legionnaires' disease is a deadly form of pneumonia caused by the bacterial pathogen Legionella pneumophila. Several outbreaks of this waterborne disease have occurred in the U.S. since 1976, and new cases have been growing at a high rate. Exposure occurs when contaminated water droplets are inhaled (e.g., during showering) or aspirated. L. pneumophila can be harbored by free-living single-celled organisms (amoebae), which can shield L. pneumophila from traditional disinfection like a 'Trojan horse', thereby increasing risk for the spread of Legionnaires' disease. This project aims to develop a low-cost disinfection technology that can harness low-energy microwave radiation to inactivate L. pneumophila in drinking water. The work includes a major outreach program with the Texas colonias, or self-built communities, which are home to 400,000 low-income people, many of whom lack access to high quality drinking water. Successful development of this technology has the potential to ensure safe drinking water for the colonias and the Nation. The goal of the proposed irradiation-based technology is to generate interfacial heat and reactive oxygen species (ROS) to inactivate L. pneumophila harbored by amoebae. Amoebae will be lysed via interfacial heating, and the released L. pneumophila will be inactivated by heat and ROS. The proposed research will deploy fundamental nanoscience to develop a point-of-use (POU) and community-scale water treatment technology. The specific technical objectives of the proposed research plan are to (i) synthesize, characterize, and test MW-harnessing nanomaterials, (ii) understand the mechanisms of microbial inactivation by this MW-based nanotechnology, and (iii) engineer two devices containing immobilized nanomaterials to effectively inactivate L. pneumophila harbored by amoebae. The research will capitalize on the scientific advantages of novel MW spectral conversion to provide safe drinking water to low-income residents of the Texas colonias and beyond. Outreach activities will occur in elementary schools and colonias located in three school districts (two in El Paso County and one in Hidalgo County, both of which have high concentrations of colonias). Hands-on educational activities related to the research will be conducted in the schools, and water sampling and household surveys will be conducted in the colonias to gather information on water quality, water use, water-related health issues, and socioeconomic conditions. The outreach is unique because the information it yields will be utilized in the device design, thereby enabling the development of a socially-embedded technology.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.