TY - JOUR
T1 - (Fluoro)quinolones and quinolone resistance genes in the aquatic environment
T2 - A river catchment perspective
AU - Castrignanò, Erika
AU - Kannan, Andrew M.
AU - Proctor, Kathryn
AU - Petrie, Bruce
AU - Hodgen, Sarah
AU - Feil, Edward J.
AU - Lewis, Simon E.
AU - Lopardo, Luigi
AU - Camacho-Muñoz, Dolores
AU - Rice, Jack
AU - Cartwright, Nick
AU - Barden, Ruth
AU - Kasprzyk-Hordern, Barbara
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by Natural Environment Research Council Project on ‘Impact of stereochemistry of antimicrobial agents on their environmental fate, biological potency and the emergence of resistance’ [grant NE/N019261/1]. The support of Wessex Water Services Ltd and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council Impact Acceleration Account (Project number: EP/K503897/1) is also greatly appreciated. Kathryn Proctor would like to acknowledge Natural Environment Research Council and Wessex Water for funding her Natural Environment Research Council CASE studentship (NE/L009579/1). This work was also supported by the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration [Grant agreement 629015, the Marie Curie IEF project ‘Chiral veterinary medicines in the environment'] and the Leverhulme Trust (Project No RPG-2013-297). All data supporting this study are provided as supporting information accompanying this paper.
Funding Information:
The support of Wessex Water Services Ltd and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council Impact Acceleration Account (Project number: EP/K503897/1 ) is also greatly appreciated. Kathryn Proctor would like to acknowledge Natural Environment Research Council and Wessex Water for funding her Natural Environment Research Council CASE studentship ( NE/L009579/1 ). This work was also supported by the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research , technological development and demonstration [Grant agreement 629015 , the Marie Curie IEF project ‘Chiral veterinary medicines in the environment’ ] and the Leverhulme Trust (Project No RPG-2013-297 ). All data supporting this study are provided as supporting information accompanying this paper.
Funding Information:
This work was supported by Natural Environment Research Council Project on ‘Impact of stereochemistry of antimicrobial agents on their environmental fate, biological potency and the emergence of resistance’ [grant NE/N019261/1 ].
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2020/9/1
Y1 - 2020/9/1
N2 - This study provides an insight into the prevalence of (fluoro)quinolones (FQs) and their specific quinolone qnrS resistance gene in the Avon river catchment area receiving treated wastewater from 5 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), serving 1.5 million people and accounting for 75% of inhabitants living in the catchment area in the South West of England. Ofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, nalidixic acid and norfloxacin were found to be ubiquitous with daily loads reaching a few hundred g/day in wastewater influent and tens of g/day in receiving waters. This was in contrast to other FQs analysed: flumequine, nadifloxacin, lomefloxacin, ulifloxacin, prulifloxacin, besifloxacin and moxifloxacin, which were hardly quantified. Enantiomeric profiling revealed that ofloxacin was enriched with the S-(−)-enantiomer, likely deriving from its prescription as the more potent enantiomerically pure levofloxacin, alongside racemic ofloxacin. While ofloxacin's enantiomeric fraction (EF) remained constant, high stereoselectivity was observed in the case of its metabolite ofloxacin-N-oxide. The removal efficiency of quinolones during wastewater treatment at 5 WWTPs utilising either trickling filters (TF) or activated sludge (AS), was compound and wastewater treatment process dependent, with AS providing better efficiency than TF. The qnrS resistance gene was ubiquitous in wastewater. Its removal was WWTP treatment process dependent with TF performing best and resulting in significant removal of the gene (from 28 to 75%). AS underperformed with only 9% removal in the case of activated sludge and actual increase in the gene copy number within sequencing batch reactors (SBRs). Interestingly, the data suggests that higher removal of antibiotics could be linked with high prevalence of the gene (SBR and WWTP E) and vice versa, low removal of antibiotic is correlated with lower prevalence of the gene in wastewater effluent (TF, WWTP B and D). This is especially prominent in the case of ofloxacin and could indicate that AS might be facilitating antimicrobial resistance (AMR) prevalence to higher extent than TF. Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) was also applied to monitor any potential misuse (e.g. direct disposal) of FQs in the catchment. In most cases higher use of antibiotics with respect to official statistics (i.e. ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin) was observed, which suggests that FQs management practice require further attention.
AB - This study provides an insight into the prevalence of (fluoro)quinolones (FQs) and their specific quinolone qnrS resistance gene in the Avon river catchment area receiving treated wastewater from 5 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), serving 1.5 million people and accounting for 75% of inhabitants living in the catchment area in the South West of England. Ofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, nalidixic acid and norfloxacin were found to be ubiquitous with daily loads reaching a few hundred g/day in wastewater influent and tens of g/day in receiving waters. This was in contrast to other FQs analysed: flumequine, nadifloxacin, lomefloxacin, ulifloxacin, prulifloxacin, besifloxacin and moxifloxacin, which were hardly quantified. Enantiomeric profiling revealed that ofloxacin was enriched with the S-(−)-enantiomer, likely deriving from its prescription as the more potent enantiomerically pure levofloxacin, alongside racemic ofloxacin. While ofloxacin's enantiomeric fraction (EF) remained constant, high stereoselectivity was observed in the case of its metabolite ofloxacin-N-oxide. The removal efficiency of quinolones during wastewater treatment at 5 WWTPs utilising either trickling filters (TF) or activated sludge (AS), was compound and wastewater treatment process dependent, with AS providing better efficiency than TF. The qnrS resistance gene was ubiquitous in wastewater. Its removal was WWTP treatment process dependent with TF performing best and resulting in significant removal of the gene (from 28 to 75%). AS underperformed with only 9% removal in the case of activated sludge and actual increase in the gene copy number within sequencing batch reactors (SBRs). Interestingly, the data suggests that higher removal of antibiotics could be linked with high prevalence of the gene (SBR and WWTP E) and vice versa, low removal of antibiotic is correlated with lower prevalence of the gene in wastewater effluent (TF, WWTP B and D). This is especially prominent in the case of ofloxacin and could indicate that AS might be facilitating antimicrobial resistance (AMR) prevalence to higher extent than TF. Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) was also applied to monitor any potential misuse (e.g. direct disposal) of FQs in the catchment. In most cases higher use of antibiotics with respect to official statistics (i.e. ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin) was observed, which suggests that FQs management practice require further attention.
KW - AMR
KW - Environment
KW - Fluoroquinolones
KW - Resistance genes
KW - Wastewater
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85087137043&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.watres.2020.116015
DO - 10.1016/j.watres.2020.116015
M3 - Article
C2 - 32622132
AN - SCOPUS:85087137043
SN - 0043-1354
VL - 182
JO - WATER RESEARCH
JF - WATER RESEARCH
M1 - 116015
ER -