[Isolation of Legionella spp. from cooling tower water in Kinki District, Japan]

Distribution of Legionella spp. were surveyed two different times in Kinki District, Japan. The first time, eighty six building cooling tower waters were collected from Osaka, Hyogo and Nara Prefecture between April and December, 1987. The second time, thirty five waters were studied from Nishinomiya City in Hyogo Prefecture on July, 1989. BMPA alpha agar plate was used as the isolation medium for the first eighty six samples and MWY agar plate for the second thirty five samples. Legionella were isolated from forty two samples (48.8%) of the first eighty six samples. Three different species of Legionella were isolated simultaneously from one sample and two species from eight samples. L. pneumophila serogroup 1 was the most predominant species. Twenty three samples (65.7%) were positive in culture from the second thirty five samples. Three different species of Legionella were isolated simultaneously from three samples and two species from eleven samples. Legionella anisa was more predominant than L. pneumophila serogroup 1 in this study.