Editing Coliform bacteria (section)

{{Short description|Group of bacterial species}}
{{distinguish|text=[[Coliiformes]], a family of birds, or [[Fecal coliform]], one type of coliform bacteria}}
[[File:E coli at 10000x, original.jpg|thumb|''[[Escherichia coli]]'']]
'''Coliform bacteria''' are defined as either [[motile]] or [[non-motile]] [[Gram-negative]] non-[[Endospore|spore forming]] [[Bacillus (shape)|bacilli]] that possess [[Beta-galactosidase|β-galactosidase]] to produce acids and gases under their optimal growth temperature of 35–37&nbsp;°C.<ref name = "Li_2019">{{cite book | vauthors = Li D, Liu S | chapter =Water Quality Monitoring in Aquaculture |date=2019 | doi = 10.1016/b978-0-12-811330-1.00012-0 |isbn=978-0-12-811330-1| title =Water Quality Monitoring and Management |pages=303–328 |publisher=Elsevier | s2cid =133759843 }}</ref>  They can be aerobes or [[Facultative anaerobic organism|facultative aerobes]], and are a commonly used [[Indicator bacteria|indicator]] of low sanitary quality of foods, milk, and water.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Martin NH, Trmčić A, Hsieh TH, Boor KJ, Wiedmann M | title = The Evolving Role of Coliforms As Indicators of Unhygienic Processing Conditions in Dairy Foods | journal = Frontiers in Microbiology | volume = 7 | pages = 1549 | date = 2016 | pmid = 27746769 | pmc = 5043024 | doi = 10.3389/fmicb.2016.01549 | doi-access = free }}</ref> Coliforms can be found in the aquatic environment, in soil and on vegetation; they are universally present in large numbers in the feces of [[warm-blooded]] animals as they are known to inhabit the gastrointestinal system.<ref name = "Li_2019" /> While coliform bacteria are not normally the cause of serious illness, they are easy to [[Microbiological culture|culture]], and their presence is used to infer that other [[pathogen]]ic organisms of fecal origin may be present in a sample, or that said sample is not safe to consume.<ref name="Li_2019" /> Such pathogens include disease-causing [[bacteria]], [[viruses]], or [[protozoa]] and many multicellular [[parasite]]s.<ref name="Li_2019" />
Every drinking water source must be tested for the presence of these [[total coliform bacteria.]]