Bacterial communities of planktonic bacteria and mature biofilm in service lines and premise plumbing of a Megacity

Composition, Diversity, and influencing factors

Journal article (2024)

Authors

Anran Ren Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Mingchen Yao Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jiaxing Fang Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Twente
Zihan Dai Georgia Institute of Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xiaoming Li Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Walter van der Meer Oasen, University of Twente
G.J. Medema KWR Water Research Institute, Michigan State University, Oasen
Joan B. Rose Michigan State University
G. Liu University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sanitary Engineering - CEG , Chinese Academy of Sciences
Research Group
Sanitary Engineering (CEG) (TU Delft)
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Published Date

2024

Language

English

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Faculty

Civil Engineering & Geosciences

Department

Water Management

Research Group

Sanitary Engineering

Abstract

Although simulated studies have provided valuable knowledge regarding the communities of planktonic bacteria and biofilms, the lack of systematic field studies have hampered the understanding of microbiology in real-world service lines and premise plumbing. In this study, the bacterial communities of water and biofilm were explored, with a special focus on the lifetime development of biofilm communities and their key influencing factors. The 16S rRNA gene sequencing results showed that both the planktonic bacteria and biofilm were dominated by Proteobacteria. Among the 15,084 observed amplicon sequence variants (ASVs), the 33 core ASVs covered 72.8 %, while the 12 shared core ASVs accounted for 62.2 % of the total sequences. Remarkably, it was found that the species richness and diversity of biofilm communities correlated with pipe age. The relative abundance of ASV2 (f_Sphingomonadaceae) was lower for pipe ages 40–50 years (7.9 %) than for pipe ages 10–20 years (59.3 %), while the relative abundance of ASV10 (f_Hyphomonadaceae) was higher for pipe ages 40–50 years (19.5 %) than its presence at pipe ages 20–30 years (1.9 %). The community of the premise plumbing biofilm had significantly higher species richness and diversity than that of the service line, while the steel-plastics composite pipe interior lined with polyethylene (S-PE) harbored significantly more diverse biofilm than the galvanized steel pipes (S-Zn). Interestingly, S-PE was enriched with ASV27 (g_Mycobacterium), while S-Zn pipes were enriched with ASV13 (g_Pseudomonas). Moreover, the network analysis showed that five rare ASVs, not core ASVs, were keystone members in biofilm communities, indicating the importance of rare members in the function and stability of biofilm communities. This manuscript provides novel insights into real-world service lines and premise plumbing microbiology, regarding lifetime dynamics (pipe age 10–50 years), and the influences of pipe types (premise plumbing vs. service line) and pipe materials (S-Zn vs. S-PE).