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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, October 2009, p. 6331-6339, Vol. 75, No. 19
0099-2240/09/$08.00+0 doi:10.1128/AEM.00288-09
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Implications of Limits of Detection of Various Methods for Bacillus anthracis in Computing Risks to Human Health
,
Amanda B. Herzog,1,4
S. Devin McLennan,4
Alok K. Pandey,1,4
Charles P. Gerba,4,6
Charles N. Haas,4,5
Joan B. Rose,3,4 and
Syed A. Hashsham1,2*
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering,1 Center for Microbial Ecology,2 Department of Fisheries and Wildlife,3 Center for Advancing Microbial Risk Assessment, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan,4 Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,5 Department of Soil, Water and Environmental Science, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona6
Received 4 February 2009/ Accepted 23 July 2009
Used for decades for biological warfare, Bacillus anthracis (category A agent) has proven to be highly stable and lethal. Quantitative risk assessment modeling requires descriptive statistics of the limit of detection to assist in defining the exposure. Furthermore, the sensitivities of various detection methods in environmental matrices are vital information for first responders. A literature review of peer-reviewed journal articles related to methods for detection of B. anthracis was undertaken. Articles focused on the development or evaluation of various detection approaches, such as PCR, real-time PCR, immunoassay, etc. Real-time PCR and PCR were the most sensitive methods for the detection of B. anthracis, with median instrument limits of detection of 430 and 440 cells/ml, respectively. There were very few peer-reviewed articles on the detection methods for B. anthracis in the environment. The most sensitive limits of detection for the environmental samples were 0.1 CFU/g for soil using PCR-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), 17 CFU/liter for air using an ELISA-biochip system, 1 CFU/liter for water using cultivation, and 1 CFU/cm2 for stainless steel fomites using cultivation. An exponential dose-response model for the inhalation of B. anthracis estimates of risk at concentrations equal to the environmental limit of detection determined the probability of death if untreated to be as high as 0.520. Though more data on the environmental limit of detection would improve the assumptions made for the risk assessment, this study's quantification of the risk posed by current limitations in the knowledge of detection methods should be considered when employing those methods in environmental monitoring and cleanup strategies.
* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, A126 Research Complex—Engineering, East Lansing, MI 48824. Phone: (517) 355-8241. Fax: (517) 355-0250. E-mail: Hashsham{at}egr.msu.edu
Published ahead of print on 31 July 2009.
Supplemental material for this article may be found at http://aem.asm.org/.
Applied and Environmental Microbiology, October 2009, p. 6331-6339, Vol. 75, No. 19
0099-2240/09/$08.00+0 doi:10.1128/AEM.00288-09
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
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