There exist many environmental reservoirs of pathogens in the world around us. Many of these pathogens are facultative or ‘opportunistic’, meaning they can also survive outside of a host for long periods of time. While many of these reservoirs have been extensively studied, one which has received less attention is soil. To identify potentially dangerous soil pathogens and determine the threat they pose we have undertaken several experiments using samples collected from around Cornwall, England. Soil samples were screened for pathogenic potential using the Galleria mellonella model system. Isolates were obtained from any samples with >50% mortality and tested individually. Isolates causing >50% mortality were selected for further study; mortality rates were obtained, and species were identified using 16s sequencing. 2 main genera of bacteria were found to be responsible for most pathogenic infections: Serratia and Providencia. We used qPCR to determine the proportion of these in our environmental samples, undertook antibiotic-resistance profiling, and sent each distinct strain for full-genome sequencing (results pending). Our results show that the majority of soil samples taken cause >50% mortality, and could pose a threat to human health. We intend to quantify the risks posed, and also to examine whether non-virulent strains could evolve to become pathogenic in vivo.
- Project data type: Other
- Scope:
- Monoisolate
- University of Bath