Scholarlink

<p>Biological stability is a&#xa0;central quality goal in drinking water, as microbial growth in distribution networks can cause sensory, operational, and hygienic impairments. Traditional microbiological assessment has long relied on cultivation-based indicators, which primarily detect changes in the cultivable fraction and provide only limited insight into dynamic processes within the microbial community. Against this background, integrative, cultivation-independent approaches to evaluate microbial dynamics in drinking water systems are gaining importance. This study introduces bacterial community turnover time (BaCTT) as a&#xa0;novel, cultivation-independent in situ parameter for assessing biological stability. BaCTT combines a&#xa0;biomass parameter (total cell counts determined by flow cytometry) and an activity parameter (bacterial carbon production determined via in situ <sup>3</sup>H‑leucine incorporation) and describes the time required for a&#xa0;bacterial community to double its biomass. The suitability of BaCTT was evaluated over seven months in a&#xa0;large, chlorinated urban drinking water supply system under continuous operation, including both the treatment plant and various network locations. While cultivation-based parameters showed no clear spatial or seasonal patterns and cell counts were primarily influenced by raw water characteristics, BaCTT enabled the clear identification of spatial and temporal hotspots of increased microbial dynamics. The results demonstrate that BaCTT provides a&#xa0;practical, timely, and easily interpretable parameter for integrative assessment of biological stability in drinking water systems. The article concludes by contextualizing the findings regarding the evaluation of BaCTT and highlights its potential as a&#xa0;basis for further applications and future investigations in drinking water supply.</p><p>This article is an adapted and slightly shortened German version of the international English peer-reviewed publication “Introducing bacterial community turnover times to elucidate temporal and spatial hotspots of biological instability in a&#xa0;large Austrian drinking water distribution network”, which was published in 2024 in the journal <i>Water Research</i> (Campostrini et&#xa0;al. <CitationRef CitationID="CR1">2024</CitationRef>).</p><p>This study forms part of the scientific collaboration Vienna Water Resource Systems 2020+ and was presented at the Mid-Term Symposium 2025.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

In-situ-Umsatzzeit des gesamten bakteriellen Mikrobioms als neuer kultivierungsunabhängiger Parameter zur Bestimmung der biologischen Stabilität von Trinkwasser

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2026年3月28日

查看全文
  • Angelika Bauer,
  • Philipp Proksch,
  • Stefan Jakwerth,
  • Andreas H. Farnleitner,
  • Alexander K. T. Kirschner,
  • Lena Campostrini

摘要

Biological stability is a central quality goal in drinking water, as microbial growth in distribution networks can cause sensory, operational, and hygienic impairments. Traditional microbiological assessment has long relied on cultivation-based indicators, which primarily detect changes in the cultivable fraction and provide only limited insight into dynamic processes within the microbial community. Against this background, integrative, cultivation-independent approaches to evaluate microbial dynamics in drinking water systems are gaining importance. This study introduces bacterial community turnover time (BaCTT) as a novel, cultivation-independent in situ parameter for assessing biological stability. BaCTT combines a biomass parameter (total cell counts determined by flow cytometry) and an activity parameter (bacterial carbon production determined via in situ 3H‑leucine incorporation) and describes the time required for a bacterial community to double its biomass. The suitability of BaCTT was evaluated over seven months in a large, chlorinated urban drinking water supply system under continuous operation, including both the treatment plant and various network locations. While cultivation-based parameters showed no clear spatial or seasonal patterns and cell counts were primarily influenced by raw water characteristics, BaCTT enabled the clear identification of spatial and temporal hotspots of increased microbial dynamics. The results demonstrate that BaCTT provides a practical, timely, and easily interpretable parameter for integrative assessment of biological stability in drinking water systems. The article concludes by contextualizing the findings regarding the evaluation of BaCTT and highlights its potential as a basis for further applications and future investigations in drinking water supply.

This article is an adapted and slightly shortened German version of the international English peer-reviewed publication “Introducing bacterial community turnover times to elucidate temporal and spatial hotspots of biological instability in a large Austrian drinking water distribution network”, which was published in 2024 in the journal Water Research (Campostrini et al. 2024).

This study forms part of the scientific collaboration Vienna Water Resource Systems 2020+ and was presented at the Mid-Term Symposium 2025.