Mathematical model of release of opportunistic bacteria in Biofilm inside drinking water distribution network

Abstract

Water is necessary for life to survive on this planet, it is essential for human health and wellbeing in many ways. In many countries, most of the consumers receive water for daily needs and drinking through a Drinking Water Distribution System (DWDS). The DWDS network consists of large number of components which are sources for the biofilm formation. Biofilm enhances the increase in the survival of pathogenic bacteria within the system network. This may lead to microbial contamination of water that is supplied to the population. Overhead tank (OHT)-based gravity-fed water distribution systems part of DWDS are popular in many low and middle-income countries yet, are poorly characterized despite being notorious for water quality deterioration. OHT water was sampled from 6 buildings over three seasons (summer, monsoon and winter) to compare the water quality in OHTs vs. at the user-end. opportunistic pathogens (Legionella pneumophila and Mycobacterium avium), 16S 17 rRNA gene copies were characterized. We introduce a compartment model for the study of dynamics of non-native bacteria in a single network connection with the biofilm present with a time-constant flow by taking in the values of the opportunistic bacteria collected from the samples of OHT’s and discuss its dynamics of survival within the connection. This study helps in further study of how the biofilms play the role in spreading the antibiotic resistance genes from the opportunistic bacteria that enter the biofilm.