BACKGROUND Samples of drinking water were collected directly from the personal water bottles of students at an elementary school in Calgary, Alberta. METHODS Total and fecal coliforms and heterotrophic bacteria were enumerated using membrane filtration and agar plate count methods respectively. RESULTS The Canadian Drinking Water Quality Guidelines (CWQG) criterion was exceeded for total co...

5.1 INTRODUCTION Organisms detected by the heterotrophic plate count (HPC) are ubiquitous in drinking-water. In order to assess the basis of confidence in existing measurements, particularly of the HPC, we have to reexamine the current role of potential waterborne bacteria in human disease. In this chapter, we therefore consider the following groups of bacteria of concern: • commensal bacteria;...

Oscillating diurnal rhythms of gene transcription, metabolic activity, and behavior are found in all three domains of life. However, diel cycles in naturally occurring heterotrophic bacteria and archaea have rarely been observed. Here, we report time-resolved whole-genome transcriptome profiles of multiple, naturally occurring oceanic bacterial populations sampled in situ over 3 days. As antici...

A sampling protocol was developed to examine particles released from granular activated carbon filter beds. A gauze filter/Swinnex procedure was used to collect carbon fines from 201 granular activated carbon-treated drinking water samples over 12 months. Application of a homogenization procedure (developed previously) indicated that 41.4% of the water samples had heterotrophic plate count bact...

The planktonic microbial communities of Lakes Hoare and Bonney were investigated during transition into winter. We hypothesized that the onset of darkness induces changes in the functional role of autotrophic and heterotrophic microplankton. Bacteria decreased in Lake Hoare during March-April, while in Lake Bonney bacterial abundances varied. Heterotrophic nanoflagellates (HNAN), phototrophic n...