Distribution of Plesiomonas shigelloides in Various Components of Pond Ecosystems in Dhaka, Bangladesh

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Abstract
Plesiomonas shigelloides is considered to be a waterborne agent of human gastroenteritis. An ecological study was carried out in five ponds in Dhaka city over a period of one year to elucidate the distribution and seasonality of this organism in various components of pond ecosystems. Samples were collected from hydrophytes, water, phytoplankton and sediment every 15 days over 12 months and cultured for P. shigelloides. P. shigelloides was isolated from a total of 120 samples including 25 (20.8%), 16 (13.3%), 22 (18.3%) and 35 (29.2%) of hydrophytes, water, phytoplankton and sediment samples, respectively. Distinct seasonal patterns of isolation of P. shigelloides were observed in the four components with two distinct peaks. The highest peaks were observed in hydrophytes and water samples in May and in phytoplankton and sediment in November. P. shigelloides was isolated from all components from all ponds during the study period. These results suggest that P. shigelloides is an autochthonous member in the freshwater pond ecosystems in Dhaka, Bangladesh.