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Volume 12
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Article

Distribution of Antibiotic Resistance in a Mixed-Use Watershed and the Impact of Wastewater Treatment Plants on Antibiotic Resistance in Surface Water

by
Sohyun Cho
1,2,
Lari M. Hiott
1,
Quentin D. Read
3,
Julian Damashek
4,5,†,
Jason Westrich
5,
Martinique Edwards
6,
Roland F. Seim
2,7,
Donna A. Glinski
7,
Jacob M. Bateman McDonald
8,
Elizabeth A. Ottesen
5,
Erin K. Lipp
6,
William Matthew Henderson
7,
Charlene R. Jackson
1 and
Jonathan G. Frye
1,*
1
Poultry Microbiological Safety and Processing Research Unit, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Athens, GA 30605, USA
2
Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, Oak Ridge, TN 37830, USA
3
Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Southeast Area, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA
4
Department of Biology, Utica University, Utica, NY 13502, USA
5
Department of Microbiology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
6
Department of Environmental Health Science, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
7
Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling, Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Athens, GA 30605, USA
8
Lewis F. Rogers Institute for Environmental and Spatial Analysis, University of North Georgia, Oakwood, GA 30566, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
Present address: Biology Department, Hamilton College, Clinton, NY 13323, USA.
Antibiotics 2023, 12(11), 1586; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12111586
Submission received: 27 September 2023 / Revised: 28 October 2023 / Accepted: 31 October 2023 / Published: 2 November 2023
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Monitoring the Occurrence and Distribution of Antibiotics, Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria and Antibiotic Resistance Genes in the Environment)
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Abstract

The aquatic environment has been recognized as a source of antibiotic resistance (AR) that factors into the One Health approach to combat AR. To provide much needed data on AR in the environment, a comprehensive survey of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB), antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), and antibiotic residues was conducted in a mixed-use watershed and wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) within the watershed to evaluate these contaminants in surface water. A culture-based approach was used to determine prevalence and diversity of ARB in surface water. Low levels of AR Salmonella (9.6%) and Escherichia coli (6.5%) were detected, while all Enterococcus were resistant to at least one tested antibiotic. Fewer than 20% of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Enterobacteriaceae (17.3%) and carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) (7.7%) were recovered. Six ARGs were detected using qPCR, primarily the erythromycin-resistance gene, ermB. Of the 26 antibiotics measured, almost all water samples (98.7%) had detectable levels of antibiotics. Analysis of wastewater samples from three WWTPs showed that WWTPs did not completely remove AR contaminants. ARGs and antibiotics were detected in all the WWTP effluent discharges, indicating that WWTPs are the source of AR contaminants in receiving water. However, no significant difference in ARGs and antibiotics between the upstream and downstream water suggests that there are other sources of AR contamination. The widespread occurrence and abundance of medically important antibiotics, bacteria resistant to antibiotics used for human and veterinary purposes, and the genes associated with resistance to these antibiotics, may potentially pose risks to the local populations exposed to these water sources.
Keywords: antibiotic-resistant bacteria; antibiotic resistance gene; antibiotic; freshwater; environment; wastewater antibiotic-resistant bacteria; antibiotic resistance gene; antibiotic; freshwater; environment; wastewater

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MDPI and ACS Style

Cho, S.; Hiott, L.M.; Read, Q.D.; Damashek, J.; Westrich, J.; Edwards, M.; Seim, R.F.; Glinski, D.A.; Bateman McDonald, J.M.; Ottesen, E.A.; et al. Distribution of Antibiotic Resistance in a Mixed-Use Watershed and the Impact of Wastewater Treatment Plants on Antibiotic Resistance in Surface Water. Antibiotics 2023, 12, 1586. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12111586

AMA Style

Cho S, Hiott LM, Read QD, Damashek J, Westrich J, Edwards M, Seim RF, Glinski DA, Bateman McDonald JM, Ottesen EA, et al. Distribution of Antibiotic Resistance in a Mixed-Use Watershed and the Impact of Wastewater Treatment Plants on Antibiotic Resistance in Surface Water. Antibiotics. 2023; 12(11):1586. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12111586

Chicago/Turabian Style

Cho, Sohyun, Lari M. Hiott, Quentin D. Read, Julian Damashek, Jason Westrich, Martinique Edwards, Roland F. Seim, Donna A. Glinski, Jacob M. Bateman McDonald, Elizabeth A. Ottesen, and et al. 2023. "Distribution of Antibiotic Resistance in a Mixed-Use Watershed and the Impact of Wastewater Treatment Plants on Antibiotic Resistance in Surface Water" Antibiotics 12, no. 11: 1586. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12111586

APA Style

Cho, S., Hiott, L. M., Read, Q. D., Damashek, J., Westrich, J., Edwards, M., Seim, R. F., Glinski, D. A., Bateman McDonald, J. M., Ottesen, E. A., Lipp, E. K., Henderson, W. M., Jackson, C. R., & Frye, J. G. (2023). Distribution of Antibiotic Resistance in a Mixed-Use Watershed and the Impact of Wastewater Treatment Plants on Antibiotic Resistance in Surface Water. Antibiotics, 12(11), 1586. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12111586

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