Response of online flow cytometry to controlled physicochemical disturbances in desalinated potable water matrices

IF 11 1区工程技术 Q1 ENGINEERING, CHEMICAL

npj Clean Water Pub Date : 2026-07-01 DOI:10.1038/s41545-026-00593-4

Ruisi Chen, Theo Kee Huisman, Peter Desmond

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Online flow cytometry (FCM) has emerged as a promising technology for real-time monitoring of microbial water quality in potable and non-potable water distribution systems. However, systematic calibration and validation of online FCM measurements under different disturbances remain limited, particularly with respect to distinguishing true microbial responses from measurement artifacts. In this study, the response of an online FCM platform was evaluated under different potential disturbances in desalinated potable water and reclaimed non-potable water matrices. Online and offline FCM showed strong agreement in intact cell count (ICC) under baseline recirculation with no statistically significant differences observed (p > 0.05), providing a reference state for calibration. Controlled spiking of defined concentration NaCl and Fe₂O₃ resulted in physicochemical responses, but ICC remained within ±7% of baseline values. In contrast, humic acid and citric acid both reduced ICC and shifted fluorescence distributions, although via distinct mechanisms: humic acid primarily interfered with fluorescence detection, whereas citric acid induced cell lysis. This study demonstrates broad online and offline FCM comparability under baseline and typical water quality disturbance conditions. It also identified humic acid interference can bias ICC via fluorescence and background effects, underscoring the need for specific gating and orthogonal validation in complex water matrices.

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在线流式细胞术对脱盐饮用水基质中受控物理化学干扰的响应

在线流式细胞术（FCM）已成为饮用水和非饮用水分配系统中微生物水质实时监测的一种有前途的技术。然而，在不同干扰下的在线FCM测量的系统校准和验证仍然有限，特别是在区分真正的微生物响应和测量伪影方面。在本研究中，评估了在线FCM平台在淡化饮用水和再生非饮用水基质中不同潜在干扰下的响应。在线和离线FCM在基线再循环下的完整细胞计数（ICC）显示出很强的一致性，没有观察到统计学上的显著差异（p > 0.05），为校准提供了参考状态。限定浓度的NaCl和Fe₂O₃的可控峰值导致了物理化学反应，但ICC保持在基线值的±7%以内。相比之下，腐植酸和柠檬酸都降低了ICC并改变了荧光分布，尽管通过不同的机制：腐植酸主要干扰荧光检测，而柠檬酸诱导细胞裂解。本研究证明了基线和典型水质扰动条件下FCM的在线和离线可比性。研究还发现，腐植酸干扰可以通过荧光和背景效应使ICC产生偏倚，强调了在复杂水基质中进行特定门控和正交验证的必要性。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

npj Clean Water Environmental Science-Water Science and Technology

CiteScore

15.30

自引率

2.60%

发文量

审稿时长

5 weeks

期刊介绍： npj Clean Water publishes high-quality papers that report cutting-edge science, technology, applications, policies, and societal issues contributing to a more sustainable supply of clean water. The journal's publications may also support and accelerate the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 6, which focuses on clean water and sanitation.