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Updated: Feb 1, 2026

Clean Sampling and Analysis of River and Estuarine Waters for Trace Metal Studies
Published on: July 1, 2016
River water analysis using a multiparametric approach: Portuguese river as a case study
Ana Barbosa-Vasconcelos1, Ângelo Mendes2, Flávia Martins3
1Department of Aquatic Production, Abel Salazar Institute for the Biomedical Sciences (ICBAS), University of Porto, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal E-mail: lucinda.bessa@fc.up.pt; Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal.
Microbiological analysis revealed fecal contamination and multidrug-resistant bacteria in Portugal's Ave River, despite good water quality indicated by other metrics. A holistic approach is crucial for accurate river health assessment.
Area of Science:
- Environmental microbiology
- Water quality assessment
- River ecology
Background:
- The Ave River in Portugal faces historical water quality degradation.
- Assessing river health requires evaluating multiple parameters.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the water quality of the Ave River using physicochemical, biological, and microbiological indicators.
- To investigate the presence and genetic characterization of resistant bacteria in the river and its biofilms.
- To compare the efficacy of different water quality assessment methods.
Main Methods:
- Physicochemical, macroinvertebrate, and microbiological (Enterococcus spp., Escherichia coli) analyses were conducted at six river locations over one year.
- Epilithic biofilms were analyzed using PCR-DGGE.
- Antimicrobial susceptibility testing and genetic characterization were performed on isolated bacteria.
Main Results:
- Physicochemical and macroinvertebrate data indicated reasonable water quality, aligning with European legislation.
- Microbiological analysis revealed increasing fecal contamination downstream, with carbapenem-resistant E. coli found at point D.
- Point F showed the highest contamination levels and incidence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) isolates; biofilm diversity was higher in pristine areas.
Conclusions:
- Divergent results between biological and microbiological assessments highlight limitations in single-indicator approaches.
- The study underscores the necessity of a holistic evaluation for accurate river water quality assessment.
- Increased prevalence of resistant bacteria downstream indicates significant anthropogenic impact.
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