EFS12- Book of abstracts - Contact
EFS12- Book of abstracts - Contact
EFS12- Book of abstracts - Contact
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SESSION 6: FUTURE CHALLENGE FOR EUROPE AND WORLWIDE<br />
Uneven and surprising colonization <strong>of</strong> water pipes <strong>of</strong><br />
hospitals and non-hospital sites by Fusarium<br />
oxysporum and F. dimerum<br />
C. Steinberg 1 , J. Laurent 1 , V. Edel-Hermann 1 , M. Barbezant 2 , N. Sixt 3 , F.<br />
Dalle 4,5 , S. Aho 6 , A. Bonnin 4,5 , P. Hartemann 2 , M. Sautour 4,5<br />
1 INRA, UMR1347 Agroécologie 17 rue Sully, BP 86510, F-21000 Dijon, France; 2 Department<br />
Environment and Public Health Nancy University, Hospital Hygiene Unit, 9 Avenue de la Forêt de<br />
Haye, BP154, 54505 Vandoeuvre-Nancy Cedex, 11 France; 3 Environmental Microbiology, Plateau<br />
Technique de Biologie du CHU, 2 rue Angélique Ducoudray, BP 37013, 21070 Dijon Cedex, France;<br />
4 Parasitology and Mycology laboratory, Plateau Technique de Biologie du CHU, 2 rue Angélique<br />
Ducoudray, BP 37013, 21070 Dijon Cedex, France; 5 Université de Bourgogne, UMR1347<br />
Agroécologie 17 rue Sully, BP 86510, F-21000 Dijon, France; 6 Hospital Hygiene and Epidemiology<br />
unit, Hôpital du Bocage, BP 77908, 21079 Dijon Cedex, France<br />
E-mail: christian.steinberg@dijon.inra.fr<br />
Fusarium oxysporum and F. dimerum are ubiquitous soil-borne fungi found in<br />
terrestrial ecosystems worldwide, but they were recently detected in the water<br />
distribution systems <strong>of</strong> hospital buildings. A survey that included various hospital<br />
buildings at different locations, various non-hospital complexes and a set <strong>of</strong><br />
private houses was conducted over 2 years in two French cities. The fungi were<br />
present only in public hospital buildings and were not detected in the other water<br />
distribution systems or in the water inlets, wherever they were. This surprising<br />
distribution can be explained by a combination <strong>of</strong> three mains factors: i) the<br />
complexity <strong>of</strong> the water distribution system <strong>of</strong> a set <strong>of</strong> regularly renovated<br />
buildings; this complexity includes the diversity <strong>of</strong> materials used for the pipes and<br />
the existence <strong>of</strong> loops in which water may stagnate; ii) the application <strong>of</strong> a<br />
sanitizing process that creates ecological voids and makes resources <strong>of</strong> interest<br />
available for opportunistic invasive fungi; iii) the real potential <strong>of</strong> strains <strong>of</strong> F.<br />
oxysporum and F. dimerum to adapt in order to exploit and to tolerate urban<br />
aquatic environments. The very low diversity among the various isolates <strong>of</strong> F.<br />
oxysporum and <strong>of</strong> F. dimerum suggests the existence <strong>of</strong> a well-adapted<br />
population (special form) <strong>of</strong> each <strong>of</strong> the two soil-borne species specialized in the<br />
colonization and exploitation <strong>of</strong> the spatial and trophic resources provided by the<br />
urbanized water supply system <strong>of</strong> public hospital buildings. The risk <strong>of</strong> fusariosis<br />
caused by such special invasive and opportunistic forms needs to be taken<br />
seriously to prevent any contamination <strong>of</strong> immunocompromised patients.<br />
Keywords: Soil-borne fungi, aquatic niche, adaptation, disease risk assessment<br />
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