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Zhang Y, Bian Z, Wang F, Peng Y, Xiao W, Zhang Q. In-situ synthesis of FeS nanoparticles enhances Sulfamethoxazole degradation via accelerated electron transfer in anaerobic bacterial communities. WATER RESEARCH 2025; 273:123025. [PMID: 39721503 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2024.123025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2024] [Revised: 11/22/2024] [Accepted: 12/20/2024] [Indexed: 12/28/2024]
Abstract
The impact of nanominerals on microbial electron transfer and energy metabolism strategies during pollutant degradation remains uncertain. This study used in situ synthesized FeS nanoparticles (FeS NPs) to increase the degradation efficiency of SMX by anaerobic bacterial communities from 25.80 % to 47.60 %. The proportion of intracellular degradation by bacteria in the community significantly increased by 23.25 times, which mainly facilitated by NADH-dependent reductases and iron-sulfur proteins. Microbial network analysis and electrochemical analysis indicated that the in-situ synthesis of FeS NPs altered the interactions among different microbial species, enabling Petrimonas to transfer electrons directly to Lysinibacillus more effectively. This adjustment led to an increase in the activity of the electron transport system by 1.2 times, an increase in the electron supply capacity by 2.8 times, and a decrease in the electrochemical impedance (EIS) to 3.21 Ω. Moreover, the coupling of electron transfer pathways and protease transport channels significantly increased Na+/K+-ATPase by 14.72 times. Inhibitor experiments and molecular dynamics (MD) results showed that FeS NPs interact with Nqo1 in the cell membrane via electrostatic force at -28.573 kcal/mol, forming a unique electron conduit with ubiquinone (CoQ). This study provides new insights into the role of in situ nanominerals in electron transfer between different microorganisms, aim to enhance the antibiotic wastewater treatment efficiency in actual anaerobic processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yaru Zhang
- College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Zhaoyong Bian
- College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
| | - Feng Wang
- College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Yiyin Peng
- College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Wenyu Xiao
- College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Qiang Zhang
- College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; Beijing ENFI Environmental Protection Co., Ltd., Beijing, 100038, China
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Mu X, Chen C, Fan Q, Zhang W, Liu F, Guo J, Qi W, Liu H. Removal and ecological impact of sulfamethoxazole and N-acetyl sulfamethoxazole in mesocosmic wetlands dominated by submerged plants: Plant tolerance, microbial response, and nitrogen transformation. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2025; 958:178034. [PMID: 39675288 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.178034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2024] [Revised: 12/06/2024] [Accepted: 12/07/2024] [Indexed: 12/17/2024]
Abstract
Sulfamethoxazole (SMX) and its human metabolite N-acetylsulfamethoxazole (N-SMX) are frequently detected in aquatic environments, posing potential threats to freshwater ecosystem health. Constructed wetlands are pivotal for wastewater treatment, with plant species serving as key determinants of pollutant removal efficiency. In this study, wetlands dominated by three submerged plants (Myriophyllum verticillatum, Vallisneria spiralis, Hydrilla verticillata) were respectively constructed to investigate the removal of SMX and N-SMX, and the impact on wetland ecology regarding plant tolerance, microbial response, and nitrogen transformation. Results showed that wetlands removed N-SMX (82.3-99.8 %) more effectively than SMX (54.3-80.2 %), with the wetland dominated by Myriophyllum verticillatum showing the highest removal efficiency. However, high concentrations (5 mg/L) of SMX and N-SMX significantly reduced NH4+-N and TN removal (p < 0.05), accompanied by shifts in microbial communities, especially a decreased abundance of Proteobacteria and key nitrogen-transforming genes. A total of 22 different ARGs (antibiotic resistance genes) were detected. SMX significantly increased the relative abundance of sulfonamide resistance genes (sul1, sul2) (p < 0.05), while major denitrifying genera, such as Thiobacillus, which were not the primary hosts of these genes, showed a significant negative correlation with sul1 and sul2 (p < 0.05). This study provides a reference for ecological remediation of wetlands in response to antibiotic contamination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoying Mu
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Yangtze Eco-Environment Engineering Research Center, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan 430010, China
| | - Congli Chen
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Qinya Fan
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Weihang Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Drinking Water Science and Technology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
| | - Fei Liu
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Jiaxun Guo
- School of Environment and Spatial Informatics, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province 221116, China
| | - Weixiao Qi
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
| | - Huijuan Liu
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
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Neyrot S, Acha D, Morales-Belpaire I. The fate of sulfamethoxazole in microcosms of the macrophyte Schoenoplectus californicus and its impact on microbial communities. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2024; 362:124947. [PMID: 39278559 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2024.124947] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2024] [Revised: 09/02/2024] [Accepted: 09/09/2024] [Indexed: 09/18/2024]
Abstract
Sulfamethoxazole is a widely used antibiotic frequently found as an environmental pollutant. It can alter microbial communities and increase antibiotic resistance, becoming a public health risk. Constructed wetlands have the potential for removing sulfamethoxazole from polluted waters, but the role of different macrophytes in this process is not well understood. We investigated the fate of sulfamethoxazole and its effect on bacterial communities in microcosms containing Schoenoplectus californicus, an altitude-tolerant macrophyte. Within the first 10 h after introducing sulfamethoxazole (initial concentration 5 mg/L) to the microcosms, the concentration in the liquid phase significantly differed between microcosms with and without S. californicus. However, over the long term (15 and 30 days post-addition), the removal percentage (around 75%) in the liquid phase was not significantly influenced by S. californicus, indicating that sediments might be primarily responsible for removing the antibiotic. The presence of S. californicus promoted algae growth in the microcosms, and we determined that algae contributed to sulfamethoxazole removal from the liquid phase, likely through adsorption. Additionally, we characterized bacterial communities in the microcosm sediments via nanopore sequencing to identify changes following sulfamethoxazole addition. The relative abundance of Proteobacteria increased from 37-46% to 48-99% with the addition of the antibiotic. Conversely, the relative abundance of cyanobacteria decreased significantly after sulfamethoxazole was added (from 17 to 35% to less than 2%), suggesting it may serve as a biological marker for sulfamethoxazole pollution. In addition, the functional profile of the community was estimated from taxonomic diversity using PICRUST.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Neyrot
- Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, Campus Universitario de Cota Cota, La Paz, Bolivia.
| | - Dario Acha
- Unidad de Ecología Acuática, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, Campus Universitario de Cota Cota, La Paz, Bolivia.
| | - Isabel Morales-Belpaire
- Instituto de Biología Molecular y Biotecnología, Carrera de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Puras y Naturales, Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, Bolivia.
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Liu H, Li S, Zhang S, Chen S, Zhang L, Maddela NR. Sulfamethoxazole exposure shifts partial denitrification to complete denitrification: Reactor performance and microbial community. CHEMOSPHERE 2024; 364:143225. [PMID: 39216555 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.143225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2024] [Revised: 08/19/2024] [Accepted: 08/29/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024]
Abstract
This study elucidated the influence on a partial denitrification (PD) system under 0-1 mg/L sulfamethoxazole (SMX) stress in a sequencing batch reactor. The results showed that the nitrite accumulation rate (NAR) significantly (P ≤ 0.01) decreased from 68.68 ± 9.00% to 49.05 ± 11.68%, while the total nitrogen removal efficiency significantly (P ≤ 0.001) increased from 23.19 ± 4.42% to 31.36 ± 2.73% in presence of SMX. The results indicated that SMX exposure switched the PD process to complete denitrification through the deterioration of the nitrite accumulation and the promotion of further nitrite reduction. The SMX removal loading rate increased from 0.21 ± 0.04 to 5.03 ± 0.77 mg-SMX/(g-MLVSS·d) with the extended reactor operation under SMX stress. Low SMX concentration exposure increased extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) content from 107.69 ± 20.78 mg/g-MLVSS (0.05 mg-SMX/L) to 123.64 ± 9.66 mg/g-MLVSS (0.5 mg-SMX/L), while EPS secretion was inhibited under high SMX concentration exposure (i.e., 1 mg-SMX/L). Moreover, SMX exposure promoted the synthesis of aromatic protein-like compounds and changed the functional groups as revealed by EEM and FTIR analysis. Additionally, SMX exposure significantly shifted the microbial community structures at both phylum and genus levels. Particularly, the abundance of Thauera, i.e., functional bacteria related to PD, considerably decreased from 41.69% to 11.62% after SMX exposure, whereas the abundances of Denitratisoma and SM1A02 significantly rose under different SMX concentrations. These outcomes hinted that the addition of SMX resulted in the shifting of partial denitrification to complete denitrification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huan Liu
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, 510006, PR China
| | - Shugeng Li
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, 510006, PR China; Key Laboratory for Water Quality and Conservation of the Pearl River Delta, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, 510006, PR China.
| | - Shaoqing Zhang
- School of Chemistry and Civil Engineering, Shaoguan University, Shaoguan, 512005, PR China; School of Civil Engineering, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, 510006, PR China.
| | - Siyu Chen
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, 510006, PR China
| | - Liqiu Zhang
- Key Laboratory for Water Quality and Conservation of the Pearl River Delta, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, 510006, PR China; School of Civil Engineering, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, 510006, PR China
| | - Naga Raju Maddela
- Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Técnica de Manabí, Portoviejo, 130105, Ecuador
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Fan XY, Zhang ZX, Li X, Liu YK, Cao SB, Geng WN, Wang YB, Zhang XH. Microecology of aerobic denitrification system construction driven by cyclic stress of sulfamethoxazole. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2024; 402:130801. [PMID: 38710419 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2024.130801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2024] [Revised: 05/02/2024] [Accepted: 05/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024]
Abstract
The construction of aerobic denitrification (AD) systems in an antibiotic-stressed environment is a serious challenge. This study investigated strategy of cyclic stress with concentration gradient (5-30 mg/L) of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) in a sequencing batch reactor (SBR), to achieve operation of AD. Total nitrogen removal efficiency of system increased from about 10 % to 95 %. Original response of abundant-rare genera to antibiotics was changed by SMX stress, particularly conditionally rare or abundant taxa (CRAT). AD process depends on synergistic effect of heterotrophic nitrifying aerobic denitrification bacteria (Paracoccus, Thauera, Hypomicrobium, etc). AmoABC, napA, and nirK were functionally co-expressed with multiple antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) (acrR, ereAB, and mdtO), facilitating AD process. ARGs and TCA cycling synergistically enhance the antioxidant and electron transport capacities of AD process. Antibiotic efflux pump mechanism played an important role in operation of AD. The study provides strong support for regulating activated sludge to achieve in situ AD function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Yan Fan
- Faculty of Architecture, Civil and Transportation Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, PR China.
| | - Zhong-Xing Zhang
- Faculty of Architecture, Civil and Transportation Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, PR China; Center for Situation Analysis and Planning and Assessment, Chinese Academy for Environmental Planning, Beijing 100041, PR China
| | - Xing Li
- Faculty of Architecture, Civil and Transportation Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, PR China
| | - Yuan-Kun Liu
- Faculty of Architecture, Civil and Transportation Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, PR China
| | - Shen-Bin Cao
- Faculty of Architecture, Civil and Transportation Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, PR China
| | - Wen-Nian Geng
- Faculty of Architecture, Civil and Transportation Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, PR China
| | - Ya-Bao Wang
- Faculty of Architecture, Civil and Transportation Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, PR China
| | - Xiao-Han Zhang
- Faculty of Architecture, Civil and Transportation Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, PR China
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Cui E, Fan X, Cui B, Li S, Chen T, Gao F, Li J, Zhou Z. The introduction of influent sulfamethoxazole loads induces changes in the removal pathways of sulfamethoxazole in vertical flow constructed wetlands featuring hematite substrate. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2024; 469:133964. [PMID: 38452680 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.133964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2023] [Revised: 02/22/2024] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024]
Abstract
High frequent detection of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) in wastewater cannot be effectively removed by constructed wetlands (CWs) with a traditional river sand substrate. The role of emerging substrate of hematite in promoting SMX removal and the effect of influent SMX loads remain unclear. The removal efficiency of SMX in hematite CWs was significantly higher than that in river sand CWs by 12.7-13.8% by improving substrate adsorption capacity, plant uptake and microbial degradation. With increasing influent SMX load, the removal efficiency of SMX in hematite CWs slightly increased, and the removal pathways varied significantly. The contribution of plant uptake was relatively small (< 0.1%) under different influent SMX loads. Substrate adsorption (37.8%) primarily contributed to SMX removal in hematite CWs treated with low-influent SMX. Higher influent SMX loads decreased the contribution of substrate adsorption, and microbial degradation (67.0%) became the main removal pathway. Metagenomic analyses revealed that the rising influent load increased the abundance of SMX-degrading relative bacteria and the activity of key enzymes. Moreover, the abundance of high-risk ARGs and sulfonamide resistance genes in hematite CWs did not increase with the increasing influent load. This study elucidates the potential improvements in CWs with hematite introduction under different influent SMX loads.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erping Cui
- Institute of Farmland Irrigation of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Xinxiang 453002, China; Graduate School of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Xiangyang Fan
- Institute of Farmland Irrigation of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Xinxiang 453002, China
| | - Bingjian Cui
- Institute of Farmland Irrigation of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Xinxiang 453002, China
| | - Shengshu Li
- Institute of Farmland Irrigation of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Xinxiang 453002, China; Graduate School of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Taotao Chen
- Institute of Farmland Irrigation of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Xinxiang 453002, China; Graduate School of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Feng Gao
- Institute of Farmland Irrigation of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Xinxiang 453002, China.
| | - Jianan Li
- School of Environmental and Municipal Engineering, Qingdao University of Technology, Qingdao 266520, China
| | - Zhenchao Zhou
- Department of Environmental Engineering, College of Environmental and Resource Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
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Zhang YR, Xu JM, Xu HR, Zhang GD, Liu XB, Cheng HY. Insights into the response of nitrogen metabolism to sulfamethoxazole contamination in constructed wetlands with varied substrates. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2024; 397:130482. [PMID: 38403169 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2024.130482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2023] [Revised: 02/20/2024] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
This study conducted an analysis of the variations in nitrogen metabolism pathways within constructed wetlands (CWs) using zeolite (CW-Z), ceramsite (CW-C), and lava (CW-L) under high concentration sulfamethoxazole (SMX) stress. The introduction of SMX hindered the formation of hydrogen bonds on the substrate surfaces; however, these surfaces still maintained a dense and thick biofilm. CW-Z exhibited superior removal efficiencies for ammonium nitrogen (NH4+-N) and nitrate nitrogen (NO3--N) compared to CW-C and CW-L, with removal rates of 92.54 ± 2.88 % and 89.39 ± 6.74 %, respectively. Interestingly, the proportion of genes involved in nitrification, denitrification and nitrate reduction genes in CW-C (36.05 %) were higher than that in CW-C (29.81 %) and CW-L (29.70 %) but the interactions among nitrogen functional bacteria in CW-Z were much more complex. Further analysis of the nitrogen metabolism pathway indicated that under CW-Z enhanced dissimilatory nitrate reduction SMX stress, while CW-L enhanced assimilatory nitrate reduction process compared to CW-C.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ya-Ru Zhang
- College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China; School of Marine and Environment, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, PR China
| | - Jia-Min Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resources and Environment, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology Shenzhen, Shenzhen, 518055, PR China
| | - Hao-Ran Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resources and Environment, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology Shenzhen, Shenzhen, 518055, PR China
| | - Guo-Dong Zhang
- College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, PR China
| | - Xian-Bin Liu
- School of Marine and Environment, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, PR China
| | - Hao-Yi Cheng
- State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resources and Environment, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology Shenzhen, Shenzhen, 518055, PR China.
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Li H, Cao H, Li T, He Z, Zhao J, Zhang Y, Song HL. Biofilm electrode reactor coupled manganese ore substrate up-flow microbial fuel cell-constructed wetland system: High removal efficiencies of antibiotic, zinc (II), and the corresponding antibiotic resistance genes. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2023; 460:132394. [PMID: 37657329 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.132394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2023] [Revised: 08/20/2023] [Accepted: 08/23/2023] [Indexed: 09/03/2023]
Abstract
A coupled system comprised of a biofilm electrode reactor (BER) and a manganese ore substrate microbial fuel cell-constructed wetland (MFC-CW) system was used to remove co-exposed antibiotic and Zn (II), as well as simultaneously reduce copies of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in the current study. In this system, BER primarily reduced the concentrations of antibiotics and Zn (II), and the effluent was used as the input to the MFC-CW, thereby providing electricity to BER. Co-exposure to a high concentration of Zn (II) decreased the relative abundances (RAs) of ARGs in the BER effluent, whereas the remaining sub-lethal concentration of Zn (II) increased the RAs of ARGs in the MFC-CW effluent. Even though the absolute copies of ARGs in the effluents increased during co-exposure, the total number of target ARG copies in the effluent of MFC-CW was significantly lower than that of BER. Moreover, BER pre-treatment eliminated most of Zn (II), which improved the electrical power generation characteristic of the MFC-CW unit. Correspondingly, the bacterial community and the ARGs hosts were analyzed to demonstrate the mechanism. In conclusion, the coupled system demonstrates significant potential to reduce antibiotics, Zn (II) and environmental risks posed by ARGs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hua Li
- College of Urban Construction, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing 211816, China
| | - Haipeng Cao
- College of Urban Construction, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing 211816, China
| | - Tao Li
- College of Urban Construction, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing 211816, China
| | - Zhiming He
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs Lyngby 2800, Denmark
| | - Jinhui Zhao
- College of Urban Construction, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing 211816, China
| | - Yifeng Zhang
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs Lyngby 2800, Denmark
| | - Hai-Liang Song
- School of Environment, Jiangsu Engineering Lab of Water and Soil Eco-remediation, Jiangsu Province Engineering Research Center of Environmental Risk Prevention and Emergency Response Technology, Nanjing Normal University, Wenyuan Road 1, Nanjing 210023, China.
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Youssef YA, Abuarab ME, Mahrous A, Mahmoud M. Enhanced degradation of ibuprofen in an integrated constructed wetland-microbial fuel cell: treatment efficiency, electrochemical characterization, and microbial community dynamics. RSC Adv 2023; 13:29809-29818. [PMID: 37829716 PMCID: PMC10566547 DOI: 10.1039/d3ra05729a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2023] [Accepted: 10/06/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Over the past few decades, there has been a growing concern regarding the fate and transport of pharmaceuticals, particularly antibiotics, as emerging contaminants in the environment. It has been proposed that the presence of antibiotics at concentrations typically found in wastewater can impact the dynamics of bacterial populations and facilitate the spread of antibiotic resistance. The efficiency of currently-used wastewater treatment technologies in eliminating pharmaceuticals is often insufficient, resulting in the release of low concentrations of these compounds into the environment. In this study, we addressed these challenges by evaluating how different influent ibuprofen (IBU) concentrations influenced the efficiency of a laboratory-scale, integrated constructed wetland-microbial fuel cell (CW-MFC) system seeded with Eichhornia crassipes, in terms of organic matter removal, electricity generation, and change of bacterial community structure compared to unplanted, sediment MFC (S-MFC) and abiotic S-MFC (AS-MFC). We observed that the addition of IBU (5 mg L-1) resulted in a notable decrease in chemical oxygen demand (COD) and electricity generation, suggesting that high influent IBU concentrations caused partial inhibition for the electroactive microbial community due to its complexity and aromaticity. However, CW-MFC could recover from IBU inhibition after an acclimation period compared to unplanted S-MFC, even though the influent IBU level was increased up to 20 mg L-1, suggesting that plants in CW-MFCs have a beneficial role in relieving the inhibition of anode respiration due to the presence of high levels of IBU; thus, promoting the metabolic activity of the electroactive microbial community. Similarly, IBU removal efficiency for CW-MFC (i.e., 49-62%) was much higher compared to SMFC (i.e., 29-42%), and AS-MFC (i.e., 20-22%) during all experimental phases. In addition, our high throughput sequencing revealed that the high performance of CW-MFCs compared to S-MFC was associated with increasing the relative abundances of several microbial groups that are closely affiliated with anode respiration and organic matter fermentation. In summary, our results show that the CW-MFC system demonstrates suitability for high removal efficiency of IBU and effective electricity generation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Youssef A Youssef
- Agricultural Engineering Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University Giza 12613 Egypt
| | - Mohamed E Abuarab
- Agricultural Engineering Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University Giza 12613 Egypt
| | - Ahmed Mahrous
- Agricultural Engineering Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University Giza 12613 Egypt
| | - Mohamed Mahmoud
- Water Pollution Research Department, National Research Centre 33 El-Buhouth St., Dokki Cairo 12311 Egypt
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Li S, Chen J, Zhao J, Qi W, Liu H. The response of microbial compositions and functions to chronic single and multiple antibiotic exposure by batch experiment. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2023; 179:108181. [PMID: 37683505 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2023.108181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2023] [Revised: 07/23/2023] [Accepted: 08/31/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the response of the microbial community to external disturbances such as micropollutants is vital for ecological risk evaluation. In this study, the effect of chronic antibiotic exposure on community compositions and functions was investigated by two batch experiments. The first experiment investigated the effect of chronic sulfamethoxazole (SMX) exposure, while the second investigated the combined effect of dissolved organic matter (DOM) sources and multi-antibiotic exposure. The results showed that the community responses to chronic antibiotic exposure depended on the dynamic balance among community resistance, adaptation, recovery, and selection, leading to nonlinear composition diversity variations. The disturbance strength of chronic SMX exposure increased with concentration (0.5-50 μg/L). However, complex sources and structures of coexisting organic matter might delay the disturbance by elevating metabolic activity and generating functional redundancy. Especially, when nutrient was a limiting factor, the disturbance strength by DOM source was greater than that by chronic antibiotic exposure. The resistance of abundant taxa to external distributions resulted in a low explanation of community diversity, while rare taxa played key roles in response to community variation and thereby affected community assembly. Long-term SMX exposure reduced the number of key species and favored the deterministic assembly process by 21%. However, elevated community adaptability might weaken the influence of antibiotic selection. Chronic SMX exposure elevated the relative abundance of sulfonamide resistance genes (sul1, sul2) by a factor of 1.2-4.3, while that of nitrogen-fixing genes (nifH, nifK) and the metabolic pathways related to the toluene, ethylbenzene, and dioxin degradation decreased. However, the combined influence of DOM sources and multi-antibiotic exposure barely caused the difference in the genes linking to element metabolism and drug resistance of microbial communities between blank and exposed groups. This study suggested that more concern should be given to the chronic environmental effect of organic micropollutants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siling Li
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Junwen Chen
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Jian Zhao
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Weixiao Qi
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
| | - Huijuan Liu
- Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
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Xie J, Zou X, Chang Y, Xie J, Liu H, Cui MH, Zhang TC, Chen C. The microbial synergy and response mechanisms of hydrolysis-acidification combined microbial electrolysis cell system with stainless-steel cathode for textile-dyeing wastewater treatment. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 855:158912. [PMID: 36162577 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.158912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2022] [Revised: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 09/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) has been existing problems such as poor applicability to real wastewater and lack of cost-effective electrode materials in the practical application of refractory wastewater. A hydrolysis-acidification combined MEC system (HAR-MECs) with four inexpensive stainless-steel and conventional carbon cloth cathodes for the treatment of real textile-dyeing wastewater, which was fully evaluated the technical feasibility in terms of parameter optimization, spectral analysis, succession and cooperative/competition effect of microbial. Results showed that the optimum performance was achieved with a 12 h hydraulic retention time (HRT) and an applied voltage of 0.7 V in the HAR-MEC system with a 100 μm aperture stainless-steel mesh cathode (SSM-100 μm), and the associated optimum BOD5/COD improvement efficiency (74.75 ± 4.32 %) and current density (5.94 ± 0.03 A·m-2) were increased by 30.36 % and 22.36 % compared to a conventional carbon cloth cathode. The optimal system had effective removal of refractory organics and produced small molecules by electrical stimulation. The HAR segment could greatly alleviate the imbalance between electron donors and electron acceptors in the real refractory wastewater and reduce the treatment difficulty of the MEC segment, while the MEC system improved wastewater biodegradability, amplified the positive and specific interactions between degraders, fermenters and electroactive bacteria due to the substrate complexity. The SSM-100 μm-based system constructed by phylogenetic molecular ecological network (pMEN) exhibited moderate complexity and significantly strong positive correlation between electroactive bacteria and fermenters. It is highly feasible to use HAR-MEC with inexpensive stainless-steel cathode for textile-dyeing wastewater treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiawei Xie
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, PR China
| | - Xinyi Zou
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, PR China
| | - Yaofeng Chang
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, PR China
| | - Junxiang Xie
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, PR China
| | - He Liu
- School of Environment and Civil Engineering, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, PR China
| | - Min-Hua Cui
- School of Environment and Civil Engineering, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, PR China
| | - Tian C Zhang
- Civil & Environmental Engineering Department, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Chongjun Chen
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, PR China; Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Technology and Material of Water Treatment, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, PR China.
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12
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He W, Fan J, Ya T, Zhang M, Zhang T, Wang X. Response of microbial interactions in activated sludge to chlortetracycline. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2022; 312:120035. [PMID: 36030958 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.120035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2022] [Revised: 07/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Chlortetracycline (CTC) has attracted increasing attention due to its potential environmental risks. However, its effects on bacterial communities and microbial interactions in activated sludge systems remain unclear. To verify these issues, a lab-scale sequencing batch reactor (SBR) exposed to different concentrations of CTC (0, 0.05, 0.5, 1 mg/L) was carried out for 106 days. The results showed that the removal efficiencies of COD, TN, and TP were negatively affected, and the system functions could gradually recover at low CTC concentrations (≤0.05 mg/L), but high CTC concentrations (≥0.5 mg/L) caused irreversible damage. CTC significantly altered bacterial diversity and the overall bacterial community structure, and stimulated the emergence of many taxa with antibiotic resistance. Molecular ecological network analysis showed that low concentrations of CTC increased network complexity and enhanced microbial interactions, while high concentrations of CTC had the opposite effect. Sub-networks analysis of dominant phyla (Bacteriodota, Proteobacteria, and Actionobacteriota) and dominant genera (Propioniciclava, a genus from the family Pleomorphomonadaceae and WCHB1-32) also showed the same pattern. In addition, keystone species identified by Z-P analysis had low relative abundance, but they were important in maintaining the stable performance of the system. In summary, low concentrations of CTC enhanced the complexity and stability of the activated sludge system. While high CTC concentrations destabilized the stability of the overall network and then caused effluent water quality deterioration. This study provides insights into our understanding of response in the bacteria community and their network interactions under tetracycline antibiotics in activated sludge system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenshan He
- Beijing Engineering Research Center of Environmental Material for Water Purification, College of Chemical Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, 100029, China
| | - Jingkai Fan
- Beijing Engineering Research Center of Environmental Material for Water Purification, College of Chemical Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, 100029, China
| | - Tao Ya
- Beijing Engineering Research Center of Environmental Material for Water Purification, College of Chemical Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, 100029, China
| | - Minglu Zhang
- State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Food Chain Pollution Control, Beijing Technology and Business University, Beijing, 100048, China
| | - Tingting Zhang
- Beijing Engineering Research Center of Environmental Material for Water Purification, College of Chemical Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, 100029, China
| | - Xiaohui Wang
- Beijing Engineering Research Center of Environmental Material for Water Purification, College of Chemical Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, 100029, China.
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Chen B, Zhou FJ, Yang F, Lian JJ, Ye TR, Wu HY, Wang LM, Song N, Liu YY, Hui AY. Enhanced sequestration of molybdenum(VI) using composite constructed wetlands and responses of microbial communities. WATER SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY : A JOURNAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION ON WATER POLLUTION RESEARCH 2022; 85:1065-1078. [PMID: 35228354 DOI: 10.2166/wst.2022.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The molybdenum (Mo) non-point source pollution in the mining area has an irreversible impact on the surrounding water and soil ecosystems. Herein, three integrated vertical subsurface flow constructed wetlands (CWs) were constructed to assess the effects of combination substrates and plant on the removal of Mo(VI). Results showed that CW1 with combination substrates and cattail exhibited a favorable removal performance for Mo(VI) at 80.90%. Moreover, most Mo(VI) retained in the CWs was retained in the substrate (58.13-88.04%), and the largest fraction of Mo(VI) retained was the water-soluble fraction on the surface of the combination substrates. Mo(VI) removal was also influenced by the microbial community composition in substrate, especially their co-occurrence networks. The species that showed significant positive correlation with Mo(VI) removal were Planctomycetes, Latescibacteria, Armatimonadetes, and Gemmatimonadetes. Moreover, CWs added plants showed that more co-occurrences interaction between taxa occurs, which means that the wetlands efficiently select recruitment of potential microbial consortia and change the co-occurrences to remove pollution in the substrate. These results could be useful in providing an ecology-based solution for the treatment of Mo(VI) in wastewater, especially in adjusting the microbial communities for Mo(VI) removal at the genetic level.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Chen
- Key Laboratory of Metallurgical Emission Reduction & Resources Recycling (Anhui University of Technology), Ministry of Education, Ma'anshan 243002, China; College of Energy and Environment, Anhui University of Technology, Anhui 243002, China
| | - F J Zhou
- College of Energy and Environment, Anhui University of Technology, Anhui 243002, China
| | - F Yang
- Nanjing Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Nanjing 210042, China
| | - J J Lian
- Key Laboratory of Metallurgical Emission Reduction & Resources Recycling (Anhui University of Technology), Ministry of Education, Ma'anshan 243002, China; College of Energy and Environment, Anhui University of Technology, Anhui 243002, China
| | - T R Ye
- College of Energy and Environment, Anhui University of Technology, Anhui 243002, China
| | - H Y Wu
- College of Energy and Environment, Anhui University of Technology, Anhui 243002, China
| | - L M Wang
- Nanjing Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Nanjing 210042, China
| | - N Song
- College of Marine Science and Engineering, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210023, China E-mail:
| | - Y Y Liu
- College of Energy and Environment, Anhui University of Technology, Anhui 243002, China
| | - A Y Hui
- College of Energy and Environment, Anhui University of Technology, Anhui 243002, China
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Hung CM, Chen CW, Huang CP, Shiung Lam S, Dong CD. Peroxymonosulfate activation by a metal-free biochar for sulfonamide antibiotic removal in water and associated bacterial community composition. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2022; 343:126082. [PMID: 34610427 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.126082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2021] [Revised: 09/29/2021] [Accepted: 10/01/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Antibiotic sulfamethoxazole (SMX) has been commonly found in various water matrices, therefore effective decontamination method is urgently needed. Metal-free pristine coconut-shell-derived biochar (CSBC), synthesized by thermochemical conversion at 700 °C, was used for activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS), an oxidant, to degrade SMX, a sulfonamide antibiotic, in water. SMX degradation, maximized at 0.05 mM concentration, was 85% in 30 min at pH 5.0 in the presence of 150 mg L-1 of CSBC. Remarkably, SMX removal reached 99% in a chloride-rich CSBC/PMS system. SMX degradation was mainly attributed to the role of CSBC in enhancing PMS activation to produce combined radical (SO4•-/HO•) and nonradical (1O2) reaction pathways. The most abundant genus in the CSBC/PMS system was Methylotenera, which belonged to the Proteobacteria phylum. Thus, from a perspective of biowaste-to-resource recycling and circular bioeconomy view point, CSBC is a potential catalytic activator of PMS for the removal of sulfonamide antibiotics from aqueous environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chang-Mao Hung
- Department of Marine Environmental Engineering, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan
| | - Chiu-Wen Chen
- Department of Marine Environmental Engineering, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan
| | - Chin-Pao Huang
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, USA
| | - Su Shiung Lam
- Pyrolysis Technology Research Group, Higher Institution Centre of Excellence (HICoE), Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030 Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia
| | - Cheng-Di Dong
- Department of Marine Environmental Engineering, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
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A Literature Review of Wetland Treatment Systems Used to Treat Runoff Mixtures Containing Antibiotics and Pesticides from Urban and Agricultural Landscapes. WATER 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/w13243631] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Wetland treatment systems are used extensively across the world to mitigate surface runoff. While wetland treatment for nitrogen mitigation has been comprehensively reviewed, the implications of common-use pesticides and antibiotics on nitrogen reduction remain relatively unreviewed. Therefore, this review seeks to comprehensively assess the removal of commonly used pesticides and antibiotics and their implications for nitrogen removal in wetland treatment systems receiving non-point source runoff from urban and agricultural landscapes. A total of 181 primary studies were identified spanning 37 countries. Most of the reviewed publications studied pesticides (n = 153) entering wetlands systems, while antibiotics (n = 29) had fewer publications. Even fewer publications reviewed the impact of influent mixtures on nitrogen removal processes in wetlands (n = 16). Removal efficiencies for antibiotics (35–100%), pesticides (−619–100%), and nitrate-nitrogen (−113–100%) varied widely across the studies, with pesticides and antibiotics impacting microbial communities, the presence and type of vegetation, timing, and hydrology in wetland ecosystems. However, implications for the nitrogen cycle were dependent on the specific emerging contaminant present. A significant knowledge gap remains in how wetland treatment systems are used to treat non-point source mixtures that contain nutrients, pesticides, and antibiotics, resulting in an unknown regarding nitrogen removal efficiency as runoff contaminant mixtures evolve.
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