Evaluation of Escherichia coli as an ideal bioindicator

• Autor(a) principal: Borges de Almeida, Maria Eduarda
• Data de Publicação: 2024
• Outros Autores: Mendes de Oliveira, Fabrynne, Pereira de Morais, Daniel, Batista de Andrade, Patrícia Karla, Giovanetti El-Deir, Soraya, Gomes Tavares, Rosângela
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Revista Geama
• Texto Completo: https://www.journals.ufrpe.br/index.php/geama/article/view/6299
• topic: ecologia; poluição; bactéria; qualidade ambiental; ecology; pollution; bacteria; environmental quality

Untreated wastewater can pollute the environment regardless of its origin. For the reuse of the water in irrigation of vegetables, which are consumed raw and with peel, it is recommended to conduct physical-chemical and microbiological analyses to confirm that the water is free from chemical substances and pathogens. The purpose of this study was to characterize Escherichia coli as a bioindicator of the quality of the effluent and the risks of its presence in the soil-water system. The criteria and parameters for characterizing E. coli as an ideal bioindicator were based on published studies. These studies consisted of establishing the important aspects for selecting the species using a ranking method, in which weights and scores were assigned to each one. It was found that coliform bacteria are widely studied as bioindicators, and their presence in water or soil can also indicate contamination by other microorganisms. In the ranking, its total score was 82, characterizing it as an excellent indicator.