Metagenomic Analysis Reveals the Fate of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in a Full-Scale Wastewater Treatment Plant in Egypt

Osama S. Ali, Walaa G. Hozayen, Abdulwahab S. Almutairi, Sherif A. Edris, Aala A. Abulfaraj, Amged A. Ouf and Hamada M. Mahmoud
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Osama S. Ali: Department of Biology, School of Sciences and Engineering, American University in Cairo, Cairo 11865, Egypt
Walaa G. Hozayen: Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Beni-Suef University, Beni-Suef 62521, Egypt
Abdulwahab S. Almutairi: Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
Sherif A. Edris: Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
Aala A. Abulfaraj: Department of Biological Sciences, Science and Arts College, Rabigh Campus, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
Amged A. Ouf: Department of Biology, School of Sciences and Engineering, American University in Cairo, Cairo 11865, Egypt
Hamada M. Mahmoud: Faculty of Science, Beni-Suef University, Beni-Suef 62521, Egypt

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 20, 1-19

Abstract: Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are recognized as hotspots for the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARBs) in the environment. Our study utilized a high-throughput sequencing-based metagenomic analysis approach to compare the ARG abundance profiles of the raw sewage, treated effluent and activated sludge samples from a full-scale WWTP in Egypt. In addition, the difference in microbial community composition due to the treatment process was assessed. As a result, 578 ARG subtypes (resistance genes) belonging to 18 ARG types (antibiotic resistance classes) were identified. ARGs encoding for resistance against multidrug, aminoglycoside, bacitracin, beta-lactam, sulfonamide, and tetracycline antibiotics were the most abundant types. The total removal efficiency percentage of ARGs in the WWTP was found to be 98% however, the ARG persistence results indicated that around 68% of the ARGs in the influent could be found in the treated effluent. This finding suggests that the treated wastewater poses a potential risk for the ARG dissemination in bacterial communities of the receiving water bodies via horizontal gene transfer (HGT). The community composition at phylum level showed that Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteria were the most abundant phyla in all datasets. Although the relative abundance of several pathogenic bacteria in the influent declined to less than 1% in the effluent, the taxonomic assignments at species level for the effluent and sludge metagenomes demonstrated that clinically important pathogens such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, and Aeromonas caviae were present. Overall, the results of this study would hopefully enhance our knowledge about the abundance profiles of ARGs and their fate in different wastewater treatment compartments that have never been examined before.

Keywords: shotgun metagenomic sequencing; antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs); antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARBs); wastewater microbiome; wastewater treatment plant (WWTP); horizontal gene transfer (HGT) (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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