Abstract:
In this study water quality and bacterial diversity in the surface water of Shahpur dam was examined to evaluate the pollution & bacterial characteristics of the reservoir. Shahpur dam in Attock District, Pakistan is an artificial reservoir that fulfills the water needs for the residents of its surrounding areas, small town Fateh Jhang and also to some of the areas ofRawalpindi city. Water samples were collected according to standard protocols from twenty different locations of the dam and tributaries keeping in view the recharge points from adjacent areas. Physiochemical parameters including Temperature, pH, electrical conductivity, dissolved oxygen, total dissolved solids, hardness, alkalinity, BOD, COD, and turbidity of water samples were determined to study the water quality. Microbial analysis including identification, characterization and bacteriological analysis were performed. In current study pH of the water sample ranged from 6.5-7.9, EC was 120-310 JlS em", COD was 190-376 mg/L, BOD was 21-110 mg/L, Hardness and Alkalinity ranged from 110-234 mg/L and 90-160 mg/L, whereas turbidity was 6-13 NTU. Bacterial strains were isolated by spread plate technique method followed by streaking on differential and selective growth media, the isolated strains were biochemically characterized on the basis of Gram staining, oxidase test, nitrate utilization test, and catalase test. Template DNA was prepared from pure cultivated bacteria and 16S rRNA gene analysis was performed using universal primers for bacteria. Sequencing and phylogenetic characterization of microbes were carried out and reported in NCBI (National Center for Biological Information) and their accession no. MH221593 - MH221599 were obtained. According to results, eight different strains of bacteria were identified namely, including Enterobacter cloacae, Shigella flexneri Escherichia coli, Citrobacter sp., Enterobacter Xiangfangensis, Salmonella Enterica Sp., Enterobacter Cancerogenus, and Pseudomonas Aeruginosa.
