Microrganismos do gênero Salmonella são eliminados em maior número por ocasião do abate, em função do estresse a que são submetidos os animais, pelo transporte da granja ao frigorífico e pelo reagrupamento anterior ao abate. Por este motivo, o estudo da presença de Salmonella spp. na linha de abate de suínos tem fundamental importância para o entendimento da epidemiologia deste agente e posterior melhoria no controle higiênico-sanitário, com conseqüente oferecimento ao consumidor de um produto de melhor qualidade. O presente trabalho teve como objetivo comparar o método tradicional de isolamento com o teste imunoenzimático (Assurance Salmonella EIA Gold - BioControl) a partir de amostras de fezes, linfonodos mesentéricos e carcaças de suínos abatidos no estado de São Paulo. Foram analisadas 92 amostras de fezes, 92 de linfonodos mesentéricos e 91 de suabes de carcaça. O teste imunoenzimático apresentou positividade de: fezes - 18,47% (17), linfonodos mesentéricos - 17,39% (16) e "swabs" de carcaça - 12,08% (11). Ao isolamento, foram observadas porcentagens de positivos em: fezes - 13,04% (12), linfonodos mesentéricos - 10,86% (10) e "swabs" de carcaça - 2,19% (2). A concordância entre os resultados obtidos através dos dois métodos foi fraca. O teste imunoenzimático se mostrou mais eficiente na pesquisa direta do agente quando comparado ao isolamento bacteriano, o que pode ser justificado pela alta sensibilidade das técnicas imunoenzimáticas e pela dependência da viabilidade das estirpes bacterianas para que as mesmas sejam isoladas em meios de cultura. A necessidade de métodos mais rápidos e menos laboriosos de detecção tem levado a avanços significativos no desenvolvimento de pesquisas e comercialização de kits de diagnóstico baseados em técnicas sorológicas, imunoabsorbância enzimática e hibridização de ácidos nucléicos. / Microorganisms of the Salmonella genera are eliminated in major number by occasion of the slaughter, in function of the stress that the animals are submitted for the transport of the farm to the slaughterhouse and for the reassemblage previous to the slaughter. For this reason, the study of the presence of Salmonella spp. in swine line of slaughter has fundamental importance for the understanding of epidemiology of this agent and subsequent improvement in the hygienic-sanitarium control, with consequent offer to the consumer of a product with better quality. The present study had as objective to compare the traditional method for isolation with imunoenzymatic assay (Assurance Salmonella EIA Gold - BioControl) from faeces samples, mesenteric lynfh nods and carcasses of slaughtered swine in São Paulo State. Ninety two faeces samples, 92 mesenteric lynfh nods and 91 carcass swabs were analyzed. The imunoenzymatic assay presented positivity of: faeces - 18,47% (17/92), mesenterics lynfh nods - 17,39% (16/92) and "swabs" of carcass -12,08% (11/91). The isolation showed: faeces - 13,04% (12/92) of positives samples, mesenteric lynfh nods - 10,86% (10/92) of positive samples and "swabs" of carcass - 2,19% (2/91) of positive samples. The agreement among the results obtained by the two methods was weak. The imunoenzymatic assay was shown more efficient when compared to the bacterial isolation, what can be justified for the high sensibility of imunoenzymatics techniques and the dependence of the bacterial sample viability for the isolation. The need of faster and less laborious methods of detection has been taking to significant progresses in the development of researches and commercialization of diagnosis kits based on sorological techniques, enzymatic immunoabsorbent and nucleic acid hibridization.

Diss. (sammanfattning). Umeå : Sveriges lantbruksuniv., 2003. / Härtill 6 uppsatser.

Microrganismos do gênero Salmonella são eliminados em maior número por ocasião do abate, em função do estresse a que são submetidos os animais, pelo transporte da granja ao frigorífico e pelo reagrupamento anterior ao abate. Por este motivo, o estudo da presença de Salmonella spp. na linha de abate de suínos tem fundamental importância para o entendimento da epidemiologia deste agente e posterior melhoria no controle higiênico-sanitário, com conseqüente oferecimento ao consumidor de um produto de melhor qualidade. O presente trabalho teve como objetivo comparar o método tradicional de isolamento com o teste imunoenzimático (Assurance Salmonella EIA Gold - BioControl) a partir de amostras de fezes, linfonodos mesentéricos e carcaças de suínos abatidos no estado de São Paulo. Foram analisadas 92 amostras de fezes, 92 de linfonodos mesentéricos e 91 de suabes de carcaça. O teste imunoenzimático apresentou positividade de: fezes - 18,47% (17), linfonodos mesentéricos - 17,39% (16) e "swabs" de carcaça - 12,08% (11). Ao isolamento, foram observadas porcentagens de positivos em: fezes - 13,04% (12), linfonodos mesentéricos - 10,86% (10) e "swabs" de carcaça - 2,19% (2). A concordância entre os resultados obtidos através dos dois métodos foi fraca. O teste imunoenzimático se mostrou mais eficiente na pesquisa direta do agente quando comparado ao isolamento bacteriano, o que pode ser justificado pela alta sensibilidade das técnicas imunoenzimáticas e pela dependência da viabilidade das estirpes bacterianas para que as mesmas sejam isoladas em meios de cultura. A necessidade de métodos mais rápidos e menos laboriosos de detecção tem levado a avanços significativos no desenvolvimento de pesquisas e comercialização de kits de diagnóstico baseados em técnicas sorológicas, imunoabsorbância enzimática e hibridização de ácidos nucléicos. / Microorganisms of the Salmonella genera are eliminated in major number by occasion of the slaughter, in function of the stress that the animals are submitted for the transport of the farm to the slaughterhouse and for the reassemblage previous to the slaughter. For this reason, the study of the presence of Salmonella spp. in swine line of slaughter has fundamental importance for the understanding of epidemiology of this agent and subsequent improvement in the hygienic-sanitarium control, with consequent offer to the consumer of a product with better quality. The present study had as objective to compare the traditional method for isolation with imunoenzymatic assay (Assurance Salmonella EIA Gold - BioControl) from faeces samples, mesenteric lynfh nods and carcasses of slaughtered swine in São Paulo State. Ninety two faeces samples, 92 mesenteric lynfh nods and 91 carcass swabs were analyzed. The imunoenzymatic assay presented positivity of: faeces - 18,47% (17/92), mesenterics lynfh nods - 17,39% (16/92) and "swabs" of carcass -12,08% (11/91). The isolation showed: faeces - 13,04% (12/92) of positives samples, mesenteric lynfh nods - 10,86% (10/92) of positive samples and "swabs" of carcass - 2,19% (2/91) of positive samples. The agreement among the results obtained by the two methods was weak. The imunoenzymatic assay was shown more efficient when compared to the bacterial isolation, what can be justified for the high sensibility of imunoenzymatics techniques and the dependence of the bacterial sample viability for the isolation. The need of faster and less laborious methods of detection has been taking to significant progresses in the development of researches and commercialization of diagnosis kits based on sorological techniques, enzymatic immunoabsorbent and nucleic acid hibridization.

Submitted by PPG Zoologia (zoologia-pg@pucrs.br) on 2018-05-18T17:22:44Z No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao_mestrado_final_paulochaves.pdf: 4426171 bytes, checksum: 8be6ef944f497d1a9518754ebfbc27c1 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Sheila Dias (sheila.dias@pucrs.br) on 2018-05-28T12:19:27Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao_mestrado_final_paulochaves.pdf: 4426171 bytes, checksum: 8be6ef944f497d1a9518754ebfbc27c1 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-05-28T12:35:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao_mestrado_final_paulochaves.pdf: 4426171 bytes, checksum: 8be6ef944f497d1a9518754ebfbc27c1 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-03-20 / Sequ?ncias de DNA usadas na identifica??o de material biol?gico t?m alcan?ado consider?vel popularidade nos ?ltimos anos, especialmente no contexto dos c?digos de barras de DNA. Aferir a esp?cie de origem em amostras de pelos, penas, peles e particularmente fezes ? um passo fundamental para quem estuda a ecologia e evolu??o de diversos animais com este tipo de amostra. Este ? o caso em carn?voros, cujos h?bitos furtivos e baixas densidades populacionais de algumas esp?cies evidenciam a import?ncia de estudos baseados em amostras n?o-invasivas. Entretanto a atual escassez de ensaios padronizados de identifica??o de carn?voros freq?entemente dificulta a aplica??o dessas amostras em larga escala e compara??es de resultados entre diferentes localidades. No presente estudo n?s avaliamos dois segmentos curtos (<250 pb) de DNA mitochondrial (mtDNA) localizados nos genes ATP sintase 6 e citocromo oxidase I com potencial de servirem como marcadores-padr?o para identifica??o de carn?voros. Entre um e 11 indiv?duos de 66 esp?cies de carn?voros foram seq?enciados para um ou ambos os segmentos do mtDNA e analisados usando tr?s diferentes m?todos (?rvore de dist?ncia, dist?ncia gen?tica e an?lise de caracteres). Em geral, indiv?duos conspec?ficos apresentaram menor dist?ncia gen?tica entre si do que em rela??o a outras esp?cies, formando agrupamentos monofil?ticos. Exce??es foram algumas esp?cies que divergiram recentemente, algumas das quais ainda puderam ser identificadas pelo m?todo de caracteres, hapl?tipos esp?cie-espec?ficos, ou reduzindo a abrang?ncia geogr?fica das compara??es (restringindo a an?lise a uma regi?o zoogeogr?fica). An?lises in silico, usando um segmento curto do citocromo b freq?entemente empregado em carn?voros, tamb?m foram realizadas para comparar o desempenho deste segmento em rela??o aos outros dois propostos. N?s ent?o testamos o desempenho destes segmentos na identifica??o de fezes de carn?voros por meio de tr?s estudos de caso: (i) fezes de felinos de zool?gico, objetivando-se verificar o potencial de contamina??o das seq?encias com DNA da presa (coelho); (ii) fezes coletadas no Cerrado brasileiro contendo restos de presas (p?los, ossos, penas), supostamente proveniente de lobo-guar?, objetivando-se investigar a efici?ncia de identifica??o do predador e ocorr?ncia de interfer?ncia do DNA da presa na identifica??o; e (iii) fezes coletadas em uma reserva na Mata Atl?ntica, tamb?m com o objetivo de avaliar a efici?ncia de identifica??o. Apesar de diferen?as em alguns aspectos de sua performance, nossos resultados indicam que os dois segmentos propostos t?m um bom potencial de servir como marcadores moleculares eficientes para identifica??o acurada de amostras de carn?voros ao n?vel de esp?cie. / DNA sequences for species-level identification of biological materials have achieved considerable popularity in the last few years, especially in the context of the DNA barcoding initiative. Species assignment of biological samples such as hairs, feathers, pelts and particularly faeces is a crucial step for those interested in studying ecology and evolution of many species with these samples. This is especially the case for carnivores, whose elusive habits and low densities highlight the importance of studies based on noninvasive samples. However, the current lack of standardized assays for carnivore identification often poses challenges to the large-scale application of this approach, as well as the cross-comparison of results among sites. Here we evaluate the potential of two short (<250 pb) mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) segments located within the genes ATP synthase 6 and cytochrome oxidase I as standardized markers for carnivore identification. Between one and eleven individuals of 66 carnivore species were sequenced for one or both of these mtDNA segments and analyzed using three different approaches (tree-based, distance-based and character-based), in conjunction with sequences retrieved from public databases. In most cases, conspecific individuals had lower genetic distances from each other relative to other species, resulting in diagnosable monophyletic clusters. Notable exceptions were the more recently diverged species, some of which could still be identified using diagnostic character attributes, species-specific haplotypes, or by reducing the geographic scope of the comparison (restricting the analysis to a single zoogeographic region). Additional in silico analyses using a short cytochrome b segment frequently employed in carnivore identification were also performed aiming to compare performance to that of our two focal markers. We then tested the performance of these segments in the identification of carnivore faeces via three case studies: (i) felid faeces collected in a controlled zoo experiment, aimed at assessing whether DNA from rabbit prey would contaminate the resulting sequences; (ii) field-collected faeces from the Brazilian Cerrado presumed to be from maned wolves and containing prey remains (hairs, bones, feathers), aimed at investigating the efficiency of predator identification and occurrence of prey DNA interference; and (iii) field-collected scats from an Atlantic Forest study site, also addressing the issue of PCR success rate and identification efficiency. In spite of some relevant differences in some aspects of their performance, our results indicate that both of our focal segments have a good potential to serve as efficient molecular markers for accurate species-level identification of carnivore samples.

Thesis (MPA.) -- University of Limpopo, 2017 / The World Health Organisation (WHO) and World Bank (WB) state that worldwide access to sanitation has improved with countries in the north having 100% access to sanitation. However, only 64% of the world's population has access to improved sanitation. Sub-Saharan Africa has a noticeable improvement with South Africa improving from 73% in 2010 to 74% in 2014. They further estimate that $260 billion is lost globally each year due to lack of adequate water supply and sanitation. Universal access to water and sanitation would result in an estimated $32 billion in economic benefits per year globally from reductions in health care costs and increased productivity from reduced illness. Sub-Saharan Africa loses an estimated 4.3% ($US694 billion) of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) each year due to lack of adequate water supply and sanitation. Furthermore, the UNDP (2015) indicates that sanitation is one of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), however many regions are performing poorly in attaining their declared sanitation targets. South African has not reached its target but it is maintaining its commitment to the provision of sanitation as a basic human right. However, it has left the responsibility to local government to work out how this should be done with no legislation. Currently there is no policy on sanitation and municipalities only develop by-laws that serve as guidelines in managing waste and providing the service. The available literature on this subject speaks very little about the knowledge and understanding that the communities have with regard to faecal sludge management and no study at all deals with the perceptions of people on this issue, particularly around Polokwane Municipality. It is for these reasons that the study was aimed at investigating the perceptions of Polokwane residents regarding alternative faecal sludge management. Methodologically the study used qualitative research approach where in face-to-face interviews and focus group interviews were conducted around Polokwane Municipality. Among the participants interviewed were Ward Councillors, Community Development Workers, Ward Committees and Traditional Authorities. These stakeholders were intentionally chosen as they are at the coalface of service delivery on a daily basis and they are part of the forums that interact with the Municipality on basic services and other related community matters. Data for this study were analysed using thematic data analysis approach. vi  The findings of this study suggest that the “concerned residents” under Polokwane Municipality see themselves being victims and vulnerable to controllable health threats. In addition, the study discovered that the majority of participants were aware of the delegated sewage maintenance duties on the Polokwane Municipality. This study findings further indicated that there is a growing concern among municipal authorities and communities‟ especially in Africa and South Africa in particular, to improve the inadequate faecal management. The objectives of the study were among others to determine the perceptions and awareness of the Polokwane Local Municipality residents regarding alternative faecal sludge management methods. Indeed, it has been discovered that some of the residents are aware of various management methods but expect authority to develop policies and improve the inadequate methods that are currently used in managing faecal sludge. The study among others discovered that this study should be used as a point of reference for municipal projects administration, i.e. for the development of Integrated Development Plan (IDP) on the water and sanitation and faecal sludge management in future. The Ministry of environmental health and management at Polokwane Local Municipality should organise solid and integrated awareness with the community to ensure a healthy environment for all. The study further realised that there is a need to equip most of residents in Polokwane Local Municipality with knowledge on how best man can improve environmental health, as well as how worse can a person destroy the environment. It should be an important task for the Polokwane Local Municipality to ensure that residents understand the faecal sludge management enterprise developments in the area to reduce the incompleteness of the perceptions among the residents. Various faecal sludge methods should be adopted and encouraged among the Polokwane Local Municipality residents in order to promote the preference for the sanitation methods. Key words: Sanitation, Faecal sludge, Faeces, Health hazards and Sub-Saharan Africa

Infectious disease can be transmitted via various environmental pathways, many of which are incorporated into our water and wastewater systems. Quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) can be a valuable tool in identifying hazard exposure pathways and estimating their associated health impacts. QMRA can be applied to establish standards and guidelines and has been adopted by the World Health Organisation for the management of risks from water-related infectious diseases. This thesis aims at presenting a holistic approach for the assessment of microbial health risks in urban water and wastewater systems. The procedure of QMRA is presented, together with the data collected for the case studies, and the results are discussed in a risk management framework. Decentralised drinking water treatment with membranes was shown to be competitive with centralised conventional treatment regarding environmental impacts and health. To attain sufficient die-off of pathogens in order to reduce risks to acceptable levels, facilities that permit the long-term storage of locally collected faeces are required. Issues of operation and mangement are likely to determine the health risks in decentralised systems. While failures in distribution are more likely to result in detectable waterborne disease outbreaks, the number of people at risk of becoming infected with pathogens passing normal treatment, calculated on a yearly basis, can be larger. Site-specific pathogen monitoring of source waters was identified as an important factor for the accurate estimation of risk. Noroviruses, an emerging waterborne pathogen, were shown to have fluctuating concentrations in surface water, with significant peaks during the wintertime. Time series analysis has potential as an early warning system if complemented by regular monitoring to discriminate peaks from random fluctuations. Groups already sensitive to infection, i.e. the elderly, the sick and children, were shown to consume higher volumes of cold tap water than the rest of the population, which may call for special atention in the risk management of drinking water systems. Microbial health risks associated with the handling and reuse of wastewater and sludge were shown to be successfully addressed within the management system Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP). Most exposure points identified could be controlled through easy measures. / Copyright Agreement: Figure 6-1, page 49 and figure 6-2, page 50 in the summary/introduction are reprinted from Water Science and Technology: Water Supply 2(2) 11-18, with permission from the copyright holders, IWA. Note: the median values are missing in the article but the figures have been corrected in the summary/introduction.

L’équilibre de l’écosystème microbien du caecum (Ca) et du colon ventral droit (Cn) équin peut être rompu par un changement brusque d’aliments et par une ration riche en amidon, et conduire à l’apparition de coliques. Chez des chevaux soumis à ces deux pratiques alimentaires, nous avons étudié les modifications de ces écosystèmes, de l’écosystème microbien fécal et de paramètres sanguins. Nous avons également testé la supplémentation composée de Saccharomyces cerevisiae et de microalgues Schizochytrium limacinum dans le cadre d’une collaboration avec Alltech. Nous avons montré que les écosystèmes microbiens du Ca et du Cn, stables lors d’un régime foin, pouvaient être rapidement modifiés par le stress provoqué par les deux pratiques alimentaires. Chez les chevaux supplémentés certains taxons bactériens potentiellement fibrolytiques ont augmenté dans le Ca et le Cn, et les dysbioses résultant d’un régime riche en amidon ont été limitées. Nous avons identifié plusieurs paramètres fécaux et sanguins reflétant les variations de l’écosystème microbien du Ca et Cn lors d’un changement de régime: les groupes bactériens fonctionnels, les abondances relatives de taxons bactériens (la famille XIII de Clostridiales, Succinivibrionaceae et des genres appartenant à Ruminococcaceae, Lachnospiraceae ou Prevotellaceae), les proportions et le ratio d’AGV, la concentration de valerate, les lipopolysaccharides fécaux ainsi que le beta-hydroxybutyrate sanguin. Ces paramètres semblent prometteurs pour diagnostiquer les dysbioses du gros intestin équin et prévenir l’apparition des coliques chez le cheval. / The balance of the microbial ecosystem of the caecum (Ca) and the right ventral colon (Cn) of the horse can be disturbed by an abrupt change of feed and by a high-starch diet, and lead to appearance of colic. We investigated the alterations of these ecosystems, of the faecal microbial ecosystem and of blood parameters in horses subjected to these two dietary practices. In addition, we tested a supplementation combining the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the microalgae Schizochytrium limacinum, in a context of partnership with Alltech. We showed that the Ca and Cn microbial ecosystems were stable under a hay diet, and can rapidly be modified under a stress caused by the two dietary practices. In supplemented horses, some potential fibrolytic bacterial taxa increased in the Ca and Cn, and the dysbiosis resulting from a high-starch diet were limited. We identified several faecal and blood parameters reflecting the variations of the Ca and Cn microbial ecosystem under a change of diet: the bacterial functional groups, the relative abundances of bacterial taxa (family XIII of Clostridiales, Succinivibrionaceae and genera belonging to Ruminococcaceae, Lachnospiraceae or Prevotellaceae), the proportion of acetate and propionate, the VFA ratio, the valerate concentration, the faecal lipopolysaccharides and the blood beta-hydroxybutyrate. These parameters appeared promising to diagnose dysbiosis in the proximal hindgut and thus prevent colic appearance in horses.

Les canidés et félidés peuvent être hôtes définitifs d’Echinococcus multilocularis, Toxoplasma gondii ou Toxocara spp., parasites responsables de zoonoses transmissibles par l’alimentation. La consommation crue de fruits et légumes porteurs de leurs œufs ou oocystes peut être source de contamination humaine. Cette étude visait à évaluer et caractériser le risque d’exposition humaine lié au dépôt de fèces de chats, chiens et renards dans les terrains potagers localisés en régions d’endémie. Ce dépôt s’est avéré important dans certains potagers des Ardennes. De plus, l’ADN d’E. multilocularis et Toxocara spp. a été détecté dans 1/3 des fèces collectées et 23 % des rongeurs piégés autours des potagers ont été trouvés infectés par au moins un des parasites d’intérêt, confirmant le risque d’exposition des hôtes intermédiaires. Parallèlement, l’identification précise des facteurs responsables du dépôt de fèces de carnivores a été conduite sur 192 potagers familiaux ou professionnels des Ardennes et de la Moselle. Au total, 1016 fèces de carnivores (59% de chats, 31% de renards et 10% de chiens) ont été collectées au cours de huit sessions de prospection. Par modélisation, nous avons montré que la présence d’une clôture limite très efficacement le dépôt de fèces de renard, tandis que la présence de rongeurs ou d’arbres fruitiers à proximité le favorise. Enfin, la mise au point d’une méthode sensible a permis la détection de l’ADN d’E. multilocularis et Toxocara spp dans 42 % et 12 % des terrains potagers. Au final, l’exposition humaine aux parasites étudiés semble élevée dans certains potagers. Des mesures de prévention basées sur les résultats de l’étude sont proposées. / Canids and Felids can be definitive hosts of Echinococcus multilocularis, Toxoplasma gondii and Toxocara spp., which are food-borne parasites responsible of zoonoses. The consumption of raw fruit or vegetables carrying their eggs or oocysts can be source of human contamination. This study aimed to assess and characterize the risk of human exposure linked to the faecal deposition by cats, red foxes and dogs in kitchen gardens located in endemic areas. This deposit was found to be important in some kitchen gardens located in the Ardennes region. Furthermore, DNA of E. multilocularis and Toxocara spp were detected in 1/3 of the collected faeces and 23% of the rodents trapped in kitchen gardens proximity were found infected with at least one of the canids or felids parasites, confirming the risk of intermediate host exposure. Concurrently, the accurate identification of factors responsible for carnivore faeces deposit was conducted from eight prospection sessions of 192 kitchen gardens, family or professional ones, located in the Ardennes and Moselle regions. A total of 1016 carnivore faeces (59% from cats, 31% from foxes and 10% from dogs) were collected. By using models to test the effect of various variables on faeces deposit, we showed that fencing efficiently limits fox faeces deposit whereas presence of rodents or fruit trees in the vicinity increases it. Finally, thanks to the development of a sensitive method, E. multilocularis and Toxocara spp. DNA was detected in 42% and 12% of the kitchen gardens. In conclusion, the human exposure to canids and felids foodborne parasites seems high in certain kitchen gardens. Prevention methods are proposed based on our results.

Thesis (MPA.) -- University of Limpopo, 2019 / Polokwane Municipality is currently experiencing water shortages, which is affecting households and industries’ which is used to remove faeces and transport them to the sewage plant through sewer networks, as the system is waterborne. This research study aims at determining the status of faecal sludge management with the aim of developing a faecal sludge management projection plan for the City of Polokwane. The plan will enable the city to understand the current and future levels of faecal sludge production and it will also highlight the water demand for faecal sludge disposal. As a result of this plan, the appropriate systems, which can be used for faecal sludge production, can be managed better and there will be relief in the current non-coping sewage plants in the municipality. The sewage plants are not coping with the amount of faecal sludge due to the growing population and the fact that the infrastructure was built before South Africa’s 1994 democratic dispensation. The empirical enquiry was conducted through the use of the interview guide and the purposive sampling strategy in order to obtain an in-depth context of the subject being studied. The study has noted that the Seshego and Polokwane Sewage Plants are receiving more sewage than they were built for. The only plant that is still within its capacity is the Mankweng Sewage Plant. Currently, the municipality does not have alternative plan to re-use water in the yards. It is also not planning to develop any other form of faecal sludge management to transport faeces from the toilets to the sewage plants despite the use of clean water. It is questionable as to whether the cleaned water or effluent released from the sewage to the environment meet the required standards. In Polokwane, the released effluent does not go back to the people directly but it is used to recharge 37 boreholes, which are used to supply water to the people. The other challenge in Polokwane Municipality, especially in Mankweng, is the petrol stations, hospitals, and abattoirs whose effluents are creating a problem to the water treatment plants. Therefore, there is a need to have a pre-treatment plants for hospitals and filling stations. Key Words: Sanitation, faeces, faecal sludge, sewage plants and water borne.

Freshwater bivalves of the family Unionidae have filter-feeding traits that alter freshwater ecosystems on several trophic levels. Filtration of organic and inorganic particulates in the water column transform matter through the mussel’s egestion before it is sequestered in the sediment, making it available as food for benthic invertebrates. Rates of filtration and deposition vary depending on species-specific traits, however, the filtration rate of Anodonta anatina (duck mussel) and Unio tumidus (swollen river mussel) are equivalent. This experimental aquarium study was performed by feeding duck mussel and swollen river mussel, to assess the biodeposition rate for both species. I hypothesized (1) that the biodeposition rate decreases for both species over a period of 180 minutes after feeding, and (2) there is no difference in deposited mass between A. anatina and U. tumidus. Results confirmed a decrease of organic and inorganic deposition over 180 minutes after feeding, with no significant difference of deposition mass between species. This study will contribute to valuable feeding methodology and knowledge for future studies of biodeposition of the family Unionidae. / Sötvattensmusslor av familj Unionidae har filtrerande egenskaper som förändrar sötvattensekosystem på flera trofiska nivåer. Filtrering av organiska och icke-organiska partiklar i de fria vattenmassorna transformerar material genom musslans matsmältningssystem som sedan lagras i sedimenten, och möjliggör materialet för födoupptag av bentiska evertebrater. Filtrering- och depositionshastigheter varierar beroende på artspecifika egenskaper, men filtreringshastigheten för Anodonta anatina (allmän dammussla) och Unio tumidus (spetsig målarmussla) är jämförbara. Denna experimentella akvariumstudie utfördes genom matning av allmän dammussla och spetsig målarmussla, med syftet att bedöma biodepositionshastigheten för de båda arterna. Jag ställde hypoteserna (1) biodepositionshastigheten minskar för båda arter över 180 minuter efter matning, och (2) det finns ingen skillnad i deponerad massa mellan A. anatina och U. tumidus. Resultaten bekräftar en minskning av organiskt och icke-organiskt material över 180 minuter efter matning, med ingen signifikant skillnad av depositionsmängd mellan arter. Denna studie bidrar med viktig kunskap om matningsmetoder och kunskaper för framtida studier om biodeposition för familjen Unionidae.