Sewage and community shower drains are environmental reservoirs of Fusarium solani species complex group 1, a human and plant pathogen

In two recent studies, clinical isolates in the Fusarium solani species complex (FSSC) were sequenced; one of the most common lineages was FSSC Group 1 (FSSC 1), a phylogenetic species that is synonymous with F. solani f. sp. cucurbitae race 2, a pathogen of cucurbit fruits. FSSC 1 was also identified in sink and shower drains in two hospitals. The environmental sources of FSSC 1 are important for understanding the epidemiology of both human and plant diseases caused by this organism. FSSC 1 was detected in sewage influent at all six tested urban wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in California with a concentration ranging from 75 to 413 colony-forming units (cfu) l⁻¹, a mean of 246 ± 52 cfu l⁻¹ and a median of 254 cfu l⁻¹. During the treatment process, the concentration of FSSC 1 in the solid and liquid fractions diminished. FSSC 1 was detected in five and six of 14 community shower drains by culturing and polymerase chain reaction, respectively, whereas FSSC DNA was detected in all drains. FSSC accounted for 17 ± 6% ( n  = 14) of the total fungal DNA in the drains. FSSC 1 was rarely isolated from post-harvest cucurbit fruits and was not found in cucurbit fields in California.