EVALUATION OF FECAL POLLUTION IN COASTAL ITALIAN WATERS BY IMMUNOFLUORESCENCE

Direct detection of fecal coliforms as indicators of fecal pollution may assess water quality more accurately than culture methods. An immunochemical technique involving the use of specific antibodies was applied in addition to plate counts to evaluate Escherichia coli in seawater samples from different coastal areas in southern Italy. The immunofluorescent method showed high specificity for enteropathogenic E. coli although the presence of a threshold value of 10(2) cell/100 ml sets a lower limit to the possibility of applying this method. It proved to be a rapid screening method to distinguish between polluted and unpolluted areas.