MOLECULAR MARKERS AND SENTINEL ORGANISMS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING

Molecular methods are useful for both to monitor anthropogenic viral, bacterial, and protozoan enteropathogens, and to track pathogen specific markers in a complex environment in order to reveal sources of these pathogens. Molecular genetic markers for fecal viruses, bacteria, and protozoans hold promise for monitoring environmental pollution and water quality. The demand for microbiologically safe waters grows exponentially due to the global demographic rise of the human population. Economically important shellfish, such as oysters, which are harvested commercially and preferentially consumed raw can be of public health importance if contaminated with human waterborne pathogens. However, feral molluscan shellfish which do not have an apparent economic value serve as indicators in monitoring aquatic environments for pollution with human waterborne pathogens and for sanitary assessment of water quality. Current technology allows for multiplexed species-specific identification, genotyping, enumeration, viability assessment, and source-tracking of human enteropathogens which considerably enhances the pathogen source-tracking efforts. KEY WORDS: microbiological monitoring, fecal contamination, fecal source discrimination, molecular markers, sentinel organisms