scholarly journals Antibiotic resistance in tap water during the summer season – preliminary research

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 ◽  
pp. 00077
Author(s):  
Agata Siedlecka ◽  
Katarzyna Piekarska

Antibiotic resistance of bacteria is regarded as a global health risk and should be monitored in all environments, including tap water distribution systems. In this study, tap water samples were collected from two water treatment plants and selected points-of-use from the water distribution network. The abundances of antibiotic resistant bacteria were determined via culture-dependent method and the presence of selected antibiotic resistance genes was detected via PCR. The influence of the distance of points-of-use from water treatment plants on bacterial loads and antibiotic resistance phenomenon was evaluated. The paper presents preliminary results of a large-scale study concerning spatial and seasonal variation in antibiotic resistance of bacteria dwelling in the tap water system in Wrocław.

2009 ◽  
Vol 75 (17) ◽  
pp. 5714-5718 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chuanwu Xi ◽  
Yongli Zhang ◽  
Carl F. Marrs ◽  
Wen Ye ◽  
Carl Simon ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The occurrence and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) are pressing public health problems worldwide, and aquatic ecosystems are a recognized reservoir for ARB. We used culture-dependent methods and quantitative molecular techniques to detect and quantify ARB and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in source waters, drinking water treatment plants, and tap water from several cities in Michigan and Ohio. We found ARGs and heterotrophic ARB in all finished water and tap water tested, although the amounts were small. The quantities of most ARGs were greater in tap water than in finished water and source water. In general, the levels of bacteria were higher in source water than in tap water, and the levels of ARB were higher in tap water than in finished water, indicating that there was regrowth of bacteria in drinking water distribution systems. Elevated resistance to some antibiotics was observed during water treatment and in tap water. Water treatment might increase the antibiotic resistance of surviving bacteria, and water distribution systems may serve as an important reservoir for the spread of antibiotic resistance to opportunistic pathogens.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luo Xu ◽  
cong li ◽  
Guozijian Wei ◽  
Jie Ji ◽  
Eric Lichtfouse ◽  
...  

Abstract Sulfamethoxazole (SMX) is a veterinary drugs and feed additives, which has been frequently detected in surface waters in recent years. This paper investigated the kinetics, evolution of toxicity and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) of SMX in reactions with free chlorine (FC) to evaluate the fate of SMX in batch reactors and water distribution systems (WDS). In the range of investigated pH (6.3 – 9.0), the SMX degradation had the fastest rate at close to neutral pH. The chlorination of SMX could be described by the first-order kinetics, with specific second-order rate constants in batch reactors of (2.23 ± 0.07) × 102 M− s and (5.04 ± 0.30) × 101 M− s− for HClO and ClO−, respectively. And in WDS of (1.76 ± 0.07) × 102 M− s− and (4.06 ± 0.62) × 101 M− s−, respectively. The SMX degradation rate was also affected by pipe material, and the rate followed the order: stainless-steel pipe (SS) > ductile iron pipe (DI) > polyethylene pipe (PE). The flow rate from 0.7 to 1.5 m/s led to an increase of SMX degradation rate in DI, but the increase was limited. In addition, SMX could increase the toxicity of water initially, yet the toxicity reduced to the level of tap water after 2 hours chlorination. The relative abundance of ARGs (sul1 and sul2) of tap water samples was significantly increased under different conditions including only use SMX, chlorination products of SMX, or pretreatment with SMX followed by chlorination.


Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 2601
Author(s):  
Agata Siedlecka ◽  
Mirela Wolf-Baca ◽  
Katarzyna Piekarska

Antibiotic resistance of bacteria is an emerging problem in drinking water treatment. This paper presents the comparison of antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) prevalence during the summer and winter season in a full-scale drinking water distribution system (DWDS) supplied by two water treatment plants (WTPs). The effect of distance from WTP and physical–chemical water parameters on its microbial properties was also tested. Bacterial consortia dwelling in bulk tap water were additionally compared by means of denaturating gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). The results showed that among ARB, bacteria resistant to ceftazidime (CAZ) were the most abundant, followed by bacteria resistant to amoxicillin (AML), ciprofloxacin (CIP), and tetracycline (TE). Numerous ARGs were detected in tested tap water samples. Only CAZ resistant bacteria were more prevalent in the season of increased antibiotic consumption, and only AML resistant bacteria relative abundances increase was statistically significant with the distance from a WTP. The investigated tap water meets all legal requirements. It is therefore safe to drink according to the law. Nevertheless, because antibiotic resistance could pose a threat to consumer health, it should be further monitored in DWDSs.


2017 ◽  
Vol 83 (15) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Aminul Islam ◽  
Moydul Islam ◽  
Rashedul Hasan ◽  
M. Iqbal Hossain ◽  
Ashikun Nabi ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Resistance to carbapenem antibiotics through the production of New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1 (NDM-1) constitutes an emerging challenge in the treatment of bacterial infections. To monitor the possible source of the spread of these organisms in Dhaka, Bangladesh, we conducted a comparative analysis of wastewater samples from hospital-adjacent areas (HAR) and from community areas (COM), as well as public tap water samples, for the occurrence and characteristics of NDM-1-producing bacteria. Of 72 HAR samples tested, 51 (71%) samples were positive for NDM-1-producing bacteria, as evidenced by phenotypic tests and the presence of the bla NDM-1 gene, compared to 5 of 41 (12.1%) samples from COM samples (P < 0.001). All tap water samples were negative for NDM-1-producing bacteria. Klebsiella pneumoniae (44%) was the predominant bacterial species among bla NDM-1-positive isolates, followed by Escherichia coli (29%), Acinetobacter spp. (15%), and Enterobacter spp. (9%). These bacteria were also positive for one or more other antibiotic resistance genes, including bla CTX-M-1 (80%), bla CTX-M-15 (63%), bla TEM (76%), bla SHV (33%), bla CMY-2 (16%), bla OXA-48-like (2%), bla OXA-1 (53%), and bla OXA-47-like (60%) genes. Around 40% of the isolates contained a qnr gene, while 50% had 16S rRNA methylase genes. The majority of isolates hosted multiple plasmids, and plasmids of 30 to 50 MDa carrying bla NDM-1 were self-transmissible. Our results highlight a number of issues related to the characteristics and source of spread of multidrug-resistant bacteria as a potential public health threat. In view of the existing practice of discharging untreated liquid waste into the environment, hospitals in Dhaka city contribute to the potential dissemination of NDM-1-producing bacteria into the community. IMPORTANCE Infections caused by carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae are extremely difficult to manage due to their marked resistance to a wide range of antibiotics. NDM-1 is the most recently described carbapenemase, and the bla NDM-1 gene, which encodes NDM-1, is located on self-transmissible plasmids that also carry a considerable number of other antibiotic resistance genes. The present study shows a high prevalence of NDM-1-producing organisms in the wastewater samples from hospital-adjacent areas as a potential source for the spread of these organisms to community areas in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The study also examines the characteristics of the isolates and their potential to horizontally transmit the resistance determinants. The significance of our research is in identifying the mode of spread of multiple-antibiotic-resistant organisms, which will allow the development of containment measures, leading to broader impacts in reducing their spread to the community.


2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 179-190
Author(s):  
R. Destiani ◽  
M. R. Templeton

Abstract This study assessed the occurrence and prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARBs) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in tap water sampled across London, United Kingdom. Sampling was conducted seasonally from nine locations spread geographically across the city. ARBs and ARGs (tet(A), dfrA7, and sul1) were detected in all sampling locations in all sampling rounds. Resistance to trimethoprim was the highest among the tested antibiotics and the sul1 gene was the most abundant resistance gene detected. Several opportunistic pathogens were identified amongst the ARBs in the water samples, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia.


Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 3477
Author(s):  
Changzhi Wang ◽  
Pei-Ying Hong

Water reuse is increasingly pursued to alleviate global water scarcity. However, the wastewater treatment process does not achieve full removal of biological contaminants from wastewater, hence microorganisms and their genetic elements can be disseminated into the reclaimed water distribution systems (RWDS). In this study, reclaimed water samples are investigated via metagenomics to assess their bacterial diversity, metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) at both point of entry (POE) and point of use (POU) in 3 RWDS. The number of shared bacterial orders identified by metagenome was higher at the POE than POU among the three sites, indicating that specific conditions in RWDS can cause further differentiation in the microbial communities at the end of the distribution system. Two bacterial orders, namely Rhizobiales and Sphingomonadales, had high replication rates in two of the examined RWDS (i.e., site A and B), and were present in higher relative abundance in POU than at POE. In addition, MAG and ARG relative abundance exhibited a strong correlation (R2 = 0.58) in POU, indicating that bacteria present in POU may have a high incidence of ARG. Specifically, resistance genes associated with efflux pump mechanisms (e.g., adeF and qacH) increased in its relative abundance from POU to POE at two of the RWDS (i.e., site A and B). When correlated with the water quality data that suggests a significantly lower dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration at site D than the other two RWDS, the metagenomic data suggest that low DOC is needed to maintain the biological stability of reclaimed water along the distribution network.


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