Abstract
In this study, 18S rRNA high-throughput sequencing was applied to investigate the eukaryotic community in a full-scale drinking water treatment plant. Eukaryotic species and microbial functions in raw water and filter biofilms were identified by metagenomic sequencing. The eukaryotic species richness and diversity presented declining trends throughout the treatment process. The lowest eukaryotic species richness was observed in disinfected water. Arthropoda, Ciliophora, Ochrophyta, and Rotifera were the dominant eukaryotic phyla and exhibited high variations in relative abundance among the different treatment units. Sedimentation significantly decreased the abundance of all eukaryotes except Arthropoda. Biological activated carbon (BAC) filtration and chlorine disinfection exerted strong effects on community composition. The eukaryotic communities in water were distinct from those in filter biofilms, as were the communities of different filter biofilms from each other. In contrast, communities were functionally similar among different filter biofilms, with the category metabolism being the dominant category represented, within which amino acid transport and metabolism (E) and energy production and conversion (C) dominated among subcategories. Seventy-one eukaryotic species pathogenic to humans were identified in raw water and filter biofilms. Quantitative PCR (qPCR) results showed that Acanthamoeba spp. and Vermamoeba vermiformis were present during some treatment processes, with concentrations of 12–1.2 × 105 copies/mL and 1 copy/mL, respectively. Neither of the two pathogenic amoebae was found in disinfected water. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) showed that pH was the most important environmental factor affecting eukaryotic community composition. Overall, the results provide insights into the eukaryotic community diversity in drinking water treatment plants and the potential eukaryotic hazards involved in drinking water production.
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We would like to thank Huayan Company for helping sampling.
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Data that support the findings of this study have been deposited in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) Sequence Read Archive (SRA) with the accession number SRP106506.
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This work was supported by the Foundation of Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education (Tongji University), China, (No. YRWEF201903), the Science and Technology Research Program of Chongqing Municipal Education Commission (Grant No. KJQN201900715), and the Starting Research Foundation from Chongqing Jiaotong University (no. 19JDKJC-A019 and no. 19JDKJC-C023).
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SL Yu and SF Yang contributed to the study conception and supervision. Experiment design, material preparation, and data collection were performed by Q Li. Data analysis was performed by W Yang, SS Que, WJ Li, and Y Qin. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Q Li. WW Yu, H Jiang, and DQ Zhao commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Li, Q., Yu, S., Yang, S. et al. Eukaryotic community diversity and pathogenic eukaryotes in a full-scale drinking water treatment plant determined by 18S rRNA and metagenomic sequencing. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28, 17417–17430 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-12079-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-12079-y