High-resolution genomic analysis to investigate the impact of the invasive brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) and other wildlife on microbial water quality assessments.

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dc.citation.issue1
dc.citation.volume19
dc.contributor.authorMoinet M
dc.contributor.authorRogers L
dc.contributor.authorBiggs P
dc.contributor.authorMarshall J
dc.contributor.authorMuirhead R
dc.contributor.authorDevane M
dc.contributor.authorStott R
dc.contributor.authorCookson A
dc.contributor.editorAdenyo C
dc.coverage.spatialUnited States
dc.date.accessioned2024-07-23T00:55:44Z
dc.date.available2024-07-23T00:55:44Z
dc.date.issued2024-01-18
dc.description.abstractEscherichia coli are routine indicators of fecal contamination in water quality assessments. Contrary to livestock and human activities, brushtail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula), common invasive marsupials in Aotearoa/New Zealand, have not been thoroughly studied as a source of fecal contamination in freshwater. To investigate their potential role, Escherichia spp. isolates (n = 420) were recovered from possum gut contents and feces and were compared to those from water, soil, sediment, and periphyton samples, and from birds and other introduced mammals collected within the Mākirikiri Reserve, Dannevirke. Isolates were characterized using E. coli-specific real-time PCR targeting the uidA gene, Sanger sequencing of a partial gnd PCR product to generate a gnd sequence type (gST), and for 101 isolates, whole genome sequencing. Escherichia populations from 106 animal and environmental sample enrichments were analyzed using gnd metabarcoding. The alpha diversity of Escherichia gSTs was significantly lower in possums and animals compared with aquatic environmental samples, and some gSTs were shared between sample types, e.g., gST535 (in 85% of samples) and gST258 (71%). Forty percent of isolates gnd-typed and 75% of reads obtained by metabarcoding had gSTs shared between possums, other animals, and the environment. Core-genome single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis showed limited variation between several animal and environmental isolates (<10 SNPs). Our data show at an unprecedented scale that Escherichia clones are shared between possums, other wildlife, water, and the wider environment. These findings support the potential role of possums as contributors to fecal contamination in Aotearoa/New Zealand freshwater. Our study deepens the current knowledge of Escherichia populations in under-sampled wildlife. It presents a successful application of high-resolution genomic methods for fecal source tracking, thereby broadening the analytical toolbox available to water quality managers. Phylogenetic analysis of isolates and profiling of Escherichia populations provided useful information on the source(s) of fecal contamination and suggest that comprehensive invasive species management strategies may assist in restoring not only ecosystem health but also water health where microbial water quality is compromised.
dc.description.confidentialfalse
dc.edition.edition2024
dc.format.paginatione0295529-
dc.identifier.author-urlhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38236841
dc.identifier.citationMoinet M, Rogers L, Biggs P, Marshall J, Muirhead R, Devane M, Stott R, Cookson A. (2024). High-resolution genomic analysis to investigate the impact of the invasive brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) and other wildlife on microbial water quality assessments.. PLoS One. 19. 1. (pp. e0295529-).
dc.identifier.doi10.1371/journal.pone.0295529
dc.identifier.eissn1932-6203
dc.identifier.elements-typejournal-article
dc.identifier.issn1932-6203
dc.identifier.numbere0295529
dc.identifier.piiPONE-D-23-24161
dc.identifier.urihttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/70274
dc.languageeng
dc.publisherPublic Library of Science (PLoS)
dc.publisher.urihttps://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0295529
dc.relation.isPartOfPLoS One
dc.rights(c) 2024 The Author/s
dc.rightsCC BY 4.0
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subjectAnimals
dc.subjectHumans
dc.subjectAnimals, Wild
dc.subjectTrichosurus
dc.subjectWater Quality
dc.subjectEcosystem
dc.subjectPhylogeny
dc.subjectEscherichia coli
dc.subjectGenomics
dc.subjectNew Zealand
dc.titleHigh-resolution genomic analysis to investigate the impact of the invasive brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) and other wildlife on microbial water quality assessments.
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.elements-id485950
pubs.organisational-groupOther
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