Amoebae of the genera Vahlkampfia, Glaeseria, Acanthamoeba, Filamoeba, Amoeba, Platyamoeba and Hartmanella were isolated from ten different brands of bottled mineral water used in Rio de Janeiro. Of these brands, only one was negative after an incubation period of twenty days, while the others were all positive for free living amoebae. The results are discussed as an indicator of the quality of commercially used mineral water and it is stressed that some of these microorganisms are potentially pathogenic.
Mineral waters; Water microbiology; Amoeba
