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. 2023 Dec;15(6):597-613.
doi: 10.1111/1758-2229.13204. Epub 2023 Sep 22.

Detection, fate and transport of the biohazardous agent Toxoplasma gondii in soil water systems: Influence of soil physicochemical properties, water chemistry and surfactant

Erin N Kinsey  1 , Caroline Korte  1 , Sohib Gouasmia  2   3 , Coralie L'Ollivier  2   3   4 , Jitender P Dubey  5 , Aurélien Dumètre  2 , Christophe J G Darnault  1
Affiliations

Detection, fate and transport of the biohazardous agent Toxoplasma gondii in soil water systems: Influence of soil physicochemical properties, water chemistry and surfactant

Erin N Kinsey et al. Environ Microbiol Rep. 2023 Dec.

Abstract

A series of laboratory experiments were conducted to study the fate and transport of Toxoplasma gondii oocysts in soils as a function of soil physicochemical properties and soil water chemistry properties. Soil columns were homogeneously packed with loamy sand soils (Lewiston and Greenson series) and sandy loam soils (Sparta and Gilford series), and subject to hydrologic conditions characterized by the absence and presence of an anionic surfactant-Aerosol 22 in the artificial rainfall. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was utilized for the detection and enumeration of oocysts in soil leachates to evaluate their breakthrough and in soil matrices to examine their spatial distribution. Differences in the rate and extent of transport of oocysts were observed as a function of physical and chemical parameters tested. The breakthrough of oocysts was observed for all the soils irrespective of the presence of surfactant. However, in the absence of surfactant, the predominant fate of oocysts in soils subject to simulated rainfall was their retention in the soil profile. The presence of surfactant induced a change in the fate of oocysts in these soils exposed to rainfall simulation as the predominant fate of oocysts was found to be in the soil leachates.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Breakthrough curves (BTCs) of Toxoplasma gondii oocysts and bromide tracer in loamy sand and sandy loam soils from the four series of soils examined (Sparta, Lewiston, Gilford, and Greenson) during simulated rainfall in the absence and presence of Aerosol 22 surfactant. C, concentration of T. gondii oocysts (oocysts mL‐1) or Br− (mg L−1) in each leachate sample; C0, concentration of T. gondii (oocysts mL−1) or Br− (mg L−1) inflowing the soil column. Oo, Oocysts; LS, loamy sand; SL, sandy loam. For ease of data visualization, the right y axis is log10‐scaled.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Spatial distribution of Toxoplasma gondii oocysts recovered from soil columns and volumetric water content in soil profiles in loamy sand and sandy loam soils from the four series of soils examined (Sparta, Lewiston, Gilford and Greenson) following the application of rainfall treatments in the absence and presence of Aerosol 22 surfactant, and about six pore volumes. Oo, Oocysts; LS, loamy sand; SL, sandy loam. For ease of data visualization, the left y axis is log10‐scaled.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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