Occurrence characteristics and influencing factors of antibiotic resistance genes in rural groundwater in Henan Province

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international Vol. 31; no. 11; pp. 16685 - 16695
• Main Authors: Zhang, Kai, Li, Kuangjia, Hu, Feiyue, Xin, Rui, Fan, Penglin, Lu, Yarou, Wang, Ningning, Qin, Mengyuan, Li, Ruojing
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.03.2024; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Antibiotic resistance; Antibiotics; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Carbapenems; Contamination; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Genes; Groundwater; Groundwater pollution; Impact analysis; Local government; Pollution control; Propagation; Research Article; Rural areas; Sulfonamides; Waste Water Technology; Water analysis; Water Management; Water Pollution Control; Water quality; Water sampling; China; Henan China; Comprehensive investigation; ARGs; Groundwater; Influencing factors; Rural areas
• ISSN: 1614-7499; 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-024-32258-5

This study determined the antibiotic-resistant gene (ARG) contents of 34 groundwater samples in Henan Province collected from September to October 2022, then assessed the roles of both water quality parameters and intI1 in ARG propagation in groundwater. The results show that there existed universal ARG pollution in groundwater, and sulfonamides-, β-lactem-, and tetracycline-resistance genes were the most prevalent gene types during the time. Sul1 contributed the majority proportion of the total resistance genes (TARGs). The prevalence of ESBLs gene bla TEM and the occurrence of Carbapenems resistant gene bla OXA-1 suggests the pollution of high-risk ARGs in groundwater demands more attention. IntI1 is prevalent and had a significantly positive correlation with almost 50% ARGs, indicating its contribution to ARG propagation in groundwater. Well types contribute little to ARG propagation in rural groundwater of Henan, which means the protective facilities established by the local government for public wells can effectively prevent contamination from exogenous ARGs. However, the economic level has no impact on the abundance of ARGs in rural groundwater, which suggests the local government should pay greater attention to investment in controlling ARG pollution in Henan rural areas.