Contamination of a Water Stream and Water Drainage Reaching Matosinhos Beach by Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2023

Authors

Pereira, MA (Author) Other; Palmeira, JD (Author) Other; Helena Sousa (Author) FFUP

Journal

Title: Microorganisms

Vol. 10

Final page: 2833

Publisher: MDPI

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 0 Citations

Scopus - 0 Citations

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00Z-R6G

DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms11122833

Abstract (EN): Antibiotic-resistant bacteria represent a major public health concern, especially impacting medical care centers and hospitals, thereby challenging the effectiveness of current infection treatment protocols. The emergence and persistence of antimicrobial resistance in the environment have been thoroughly researched, with a focus on the aquatic environment as a potential reservoir of these bacteria in areas with anthropogenic contamination. Having this in mind, this work aims to investigate the water streams of Riguinha and Brito Capelo Street, both of which ultimately flow into Matosinhos Beach in Portugal, to determine the potential presence of fecal contamination. Six water samples were collected and analyzed within twenty-four hours from these two water streams. A phenotypic characterization was performed in various volumes on MacConkey agar with antibiotics. Randomly selected lactose-fermenting gram-negative bacteria underwent antimicrobial susceptibility tests using the agar diffusion method following EUCAST guidelines, covering beta-lactam and non-beta-lactam antibiotics. The isolates were analyzed through Polymerase Chain Reaction. The findings of this study confirm that both water streams were contaminated by multidrug-resistant bacteria such as Enterobacteriaceae, including Escherichia coli, the KESC group, and Pseudomonas, exhibiting extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL), AmpC beta-lactamases, and carbapenemases. These indicate the presence of fecal contamination with relevant antimicrobial-resistant threats.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 19