A watershed-scale potential pathogenic bacteria dataset from the Yangtze River Basin

Area of Science:

• Environmental microbiology
• Bioinformatics
• Water quality assessment

Background:

• Microbial safety is crucial for the Yangtze River Basin, a major drinking water source facing contamination risks from wastewater.
• Previous studies lacked comprehensive data on pathogenic microbial diversity and distribution due to limited sampling.
• Anthropogenic pressures threaten the ecological and economic importance of the Yangtze River Basin.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically assess pathogenic microbial diversity and distribution across the Yangtze River Basin.
• To establish a comprehensive catalog of potential pathogens in the river's water, sediments, and soils.
• To develop a baseline for microbial risk management and biosurveillance.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a novel bioinformatic pipeline with Genome-Specific Markers for accurate pathogen identification and quantification.
• Analyzed 625 publicly available metagenomes from water, sediments, and riparian soils along the Yangtze River.
• Reconstructed a potential pathogen catalog and generated distribution maps.

Main Results:

• Identified and cataloged 403 potential pathogenic taxa, significantly expanding known pathogen diversity in the river ecosystem.
• Generated basin-scale richness distribution maps for potential pathogens in water, sediments, and soils.
• Provided a genomic-resolution inventory of potential pathogens across the Yangtze River continuum.

Conclusions:

• The study establishes a crucial baseline for pathogenic bacteria communities in the Yangtze Basin.
• The developed pathogen catalog serves as a valuable reference for rapid biosurveillance and risk management.
• This research enhances understanding of microbial safety in a critical water resource and informs future management strategies.