Abstract
Gastrointestinal diseases caused by protozoan parasites remain a major challenge in developing countries and ingestion of contaminated surface water represents one of the main sources by which these diseases are contracted. This study assessed the risk of infection and diseases caused by Cryptosporidium spp. and Giardia sp. due to ingestion of surface water used for public supply and recreational activities, focusing on the southeastern Brazilian Pardo River and applying the USEPA 1623 method to quantify (oo)cyst concentrations. Infection and disease probabilities due to ingestion of drinking water or during recreational activities were estimated using the Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment (QMRA) approach. Mean concentrations of Cryptosporidium spp. and Giardia sp. in surface water ranged from 0.2 to 0.4 oocysts L−1 and 0.2 to 4.4 cysts L−1, respectively. Considering public water supply, annual infection probabilities were higher for adults than children and exceeded the USEPA limit; also, disease probabilities were higher for adults than children. For recreational activities, annual infection and disease probabilities were higher for children, followed by men and women. The occurrence of both parasites likely reflects raw sewage discharge, effluent from sewage treatment plants, and diffuse sources of pollution, such as runoff from pasture lands and deforested riparian forest corridors. Our results highlight substantial infection risks by both parasite types after conventional treatment of water used for public supply and also call for careful monitoring of water bodies used for recreational purposes.
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All data generated or analyzed during this study will be made available to interested researchers upon reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
The present study is the result of research activities related to the monitoring and assessment of water quality that were supported by the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES), and the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq).
Funding
This work received financial support from the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP; grant number 2013/07238–2) and the State Water Resources Fund (FEHIDRO; grant number 105/2013).
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Fregonesi, B.M., Zagui, G.S., de Abreu Tonani, K.A. et al. Human health risk assessment for (re)emerging protozoan parasites in surface water used for public supply and recreational activities. Environ Monit Assess 194, 407 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-022-10058-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-022-10058-z