HOME >> BIOLOGY >> NEWS
Sea grant study indicates potentially harmful human viruses in coastal waters

IRVINE, CA. Using a technique developed to track pathogens in sewage, a California Sea Grant funded researcher has shown that potentially harmful human viruses are contaminating coastal waters in Southern California at major river mouths.

Tests have not determined whether the viruses are virulent, but their presence does indicate that human waste is making its way into urban waterways. Because of the health risks associated with human waste, some groups are beginning to test their creeks and drainage culverts for signs of human contamination.

The risk of contamination from human waste appears to be significant, according to a survey of 12 river mouths in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties conducted by assistant professor Sunny Jiang at UC Irvine. In the 1999 survey, also funded by California Sea Grant, Jiang reports that four of the 12 sites sampled tested positive for the presence of the human adenovirus: the Los Angeles, San Gabriel, Santa Ana and Tijuana river mouths. Of these four only the Los Angeles river mouth also registered as having high fecal bacteria levels, the standard criteria for evaluating water quality, closing beaches and monitoring compliance with federal clean water laws.

Because the presence of the virus did not correspond with high bacteria counts, Jiang said she believes the current water quality standards are "not adequately indicating human health risks."

"The presence of the virus does not correlate with high levels of bacteria," Jiang said. "Therefore, you don't have a beach closure and are potentially exposing people to health risks."

The adenovirus is considered a pathogen and is a member of a larger group of enteric viruses, which includes hepatitis A. When ingested, enteric viruses may attack the gastrointestinal track or the respiratory system, sometimes fatally. More typically, infection causes sore throat, diarrhea, fever and nausea. There are more than 100 viruses found in human waste that can survive
'"/>

Contact: Sunny C. Jiang
sjiang@uci.edu
949-824-5527
National Sea Grant College Program
5-Feb-2001


Page: 1 2 3

Related biology news :

1. UT Southwestern receives $1.78 million grant for obesity research as part of NIH Roadmap initiative
2. Schepens Eye Research Institute receives Roadmap grant to develop center for curing eye diseases
3. Florida Tech earns $50,000 grant to create coral database
4. $7.5 Million grant to Yale researchers for role of viruses in cancer
5. Northeastern University receives $12.4 million NSF grant for creation of nanomanufacturing institute
6. $2.7 million grant to support creation of virtual zebrafish atlas
7. Brown ecologist garners major National Science Foundation grant
8. Ecology of infectious diseases grants awarded
9. University of Pittsburgh receives $10 million grant for head and neck cancer
10. UCR earns $1.5 million grant to examine how engineered crop genes stray
11. NSF awards $10 million in grants to ocean sites for long-term ecological research

Post Your Comments:
(Date:5/17/2013)... The AGA Research Foundation announced a new grant ... the gut microbiota, one of today,s most exciting areas ... The AGA Research Awards Panel selected Andrew T. Chan, ... and Harvard Medical School, Boston, as the 2013 AGA-Elsevier ... receive $25,000 of funding, commencing in July 2013, to ...
(Date:5/17/2013)... May 17, 2013, Shenzhen, China---- Why Tibetan antelope ... Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau? In a collaborative research published in ... BGI, and other institutes provide evidence that some ... adaption to harsh highland environments. The data in ... specific genetic mechanisms and the biology of other ...
(Date:5/16/2013)... a commitment to the support of underrepresented minority ... Foundation has announced the inaugural AGA Investing in ... by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive ... underrepresented minority students to further their research careers ... establishing this new award, AGA demonstrates its commitment ...
Breaking Biology News(10 mins):New gut microbiome research to explore red meat -- colorectal cancer pathway 2The genome sequence of Tibetan antelope sheds new light on high-altitude adaptation 2Underrepresented minority students receive fellowships in digestive disease and nutrition research 2
(Date:5/17/2013)... 2013 The new Public-Private Partnership (PPP) ... the association’s recent annual meeting drew praise from community ... Kroes, who called the action “a huge step forward ... to European innovation.” , The Board of Stakeholders voted ... Photonics PPP at its 29 April meeting in Brussels, ...
(Date:5/17/2013)... International, Inc. (NASDAQ: YONG ) ("Yongye" or ... crop nutrient products in the People,s Republic ... 16, 2013, the special committee (the "Special Committee") of ... provided a letter (the "Letter") issued by Abax Global ... to Full Alliance International Limited ("Full Alliance"). The Letter, ...
(Date:5/17/2013)... 17, 2013 The paradigm of ‘one ... systems that can help predict the adverse and therapeutic ... Stepaniants, Head of Computational Biology at the Genomics Laboratory, ... to ensure high-quality genomics when used as part of ... to complex data sets to identify key clinical targets ...
(Date:5/17/2013)... Tooth decay is an epidemic in American children with 50% ... World Health Organization says that worldwide, 60–90% of ... are the long-term effects of this transmissible infection? , ... oral bacterial imbalance and serious systemic issues like heart disease. ... also 100% preventable? Answer: there has been no way to ...
Breaking Biology Technology:SPIE Joins in Praise for ‘Huge Step Forward’ for Innovation R&D Enabled by Photonics21 Actions 2SPIE Joins in Praise for ‘Huge Step Forward’ for Innovation R&D Enabled by Photonics21 Actions 3Yongye International Provides Update on Status of Proposed Go Private Offer 2Yongye International Provides Update on Status of Proposed Go Private Offer 3Yongye International Provides Update on Status of Proposed Go Private Offer 4Seeing the Future: How a Revolutionary New Bacterial Screening Device Can Predict a Patient’s Future for Tooth Decay 2Seeing the Future: How a Revolutionary New Bacterial Screening Device Can Predict a Patient’s Future for Tooth Decay 3
Cached News: