Diversity of Fungi in Bottled drinking Water in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

What is it about?

This is among the few studies about fungal contamination in bottled drinking waters. The samples were of international trademarks and bought in Saudi Arabian markers. Forty unopened bottled water samples, of different trademarks, were collected from various localities of Jeddah city, Saudi Arabia and analyzed for fungal contamination. The fungal species were identified under a compound microscope followed by molecular sequencing. At least one fungal species were found in 58% of the bottles. The 180 days storage of opened and reclosed bottles did not substantially affect the abundance of fungi or the species found. Some of the fungi identified may be pathogenic and the contamination of fungi in bottled water should be paid attention to during the processing of water.

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Why is it important?

The diversity of fungi (18 species belonging to 11 fungal genera) occurring in bottled water seems to be relatively high. The species that frequently contaminated bottles were Rhizopus nigricans and seven different species of Aspergillus. Penicillium sp. were found in one sample. Although some species are known as pathogens. Harmful health effects seem to be possible, mostly for immunocompromised people. However, the link to health effects is still not fully understood. Because we observed fungal contamination in more than half of the bottled waters studied, the fungi should be taken into account in the bottled water purification processes and in the quality control assessment. The ozone treatment may reduce fungal contamination in bottled waters. Future studies should focus on the mycotoxins the fungi are producing in water.