2018 Volume 16 Issue 2 Pages 94-105
The influent of municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) can contain micropollutants such as antibiotics, chlorine, detergents, and biocides. In vitro studies have shown that these micropollutants may induce antibiotic resistance in bacteria. Previous studies have reported increases or decreases of antibiotic-resistant bacteria between the influent and effluent of WWTP in an unpredictable manner. Thus, the triggers of resistance induction in WWTP are largely unknown. To investigate the effects of unit operations in WWTP on antibiotic resistance induction, we incubated sixteen strains of Escherichia coli susceptible to amoxicillin or norfloxacin under simulated conditions of the primary sedimentation tank, aeration tank and final sedimentation tank in sterilized and filtered wastewater from each tank at 25°C for 1, 6 and 2 hours, respectively, which are typical hydraulic retention time of each tank. The minimum inhibition concentration towards amoxicillin or norfloxacin was compared before and after incubation to evaluate the occurrence of induction. We found that resistance to both antibiotics was more likely to increase in the aeration tank than in the primary sedimentation tank or final sedimentation tank. The longer contact time with the wastewater and the aeration are factors that appeared to induce antibiotic resistance in an activated sludge process.
