Effect of starvation on survival and adhesion ability of Shigella spp. in domestic treatment plant effluent microcosms

The survival of bacteria in natural environments is of practical importance. In this study, we investigated the effect of starvation on the survival and adhesion ability of Shigella in domestic treatment plant effluent microcosms after incubation at either room temperature or 4°C for 1 month. Our results showed that the number of cells decreased considerably after this period of stress. We also revealed some modifications to the biochemical and enzymatic profiles, and antibiotic susceptibility of stressed cells. Adherence assays to the human oral cavity epidermoid carcinoma (KB) cell line revealed an increase in the number of adherent cells from 0.7 to 1.85% after 1 month of incubation in domestic treatment plant effluent.