Diversity and antibiotic resistance profiles of Pseudomonads from a hospital wastewater treatment plant.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the diversity of Pseudomonads and antibiotic resistance profiles of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a hospital wastewater treatment plant (HWTP) located in Rio de Janeiro city, Brazil. Due its intrinsic multidrug resistance and its ability to colonize several environments, we selected Ps. aeruginosa isolates as indicator of antimicrobial resistance frequency.


RESULTS
Twenty-seven Ps. aeruginosa strains isolated from five stages of HWTP identified by rrs 16S rDNA sequencing were submitted against 12 antimicrobials through disc diffusion method. Among these isolates, 62·9% showed aztreonam resistance, followed by ticarcillin/clavulanic acid (33·3%) and cefepime (22·2%). Of these isolates, 22·2% were classified as multidrug-resistant (MDR ≥ 3 classes). Five 16S rRNA gene libraries of Pseudomonas genus were constructed, one for each stages of the plant, yielding 93 sequences clustered in 41 Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs). Each treatment step showed unique OTU's composition, suggesting changes in Pseudomonas spp. communities during the process. Several Pseudomonas species involved in biodegradation and bioremediation of xenobiotics were detected suggesting a positive impact in the wastewater treatment.


CONCLUSIONS
Our strategy using metagenomics associated with the isolation of Ps. aeruginosa strains as bio-indicator allowed us to assess their antimicrobial susceptibility, the viability and diversity of Pseudomonas species in the hospital wastewater.


CONCLUSIONS
The presence of MDR bacteria from treated effluents alerts for the need to improve these systems to avoid the spreading of resistance genes in aquatic ecosystems. This has special relevance in Brazil, where a significant portion of the population has no access to treated water.
Instituto Nacional de Controle de qualidade em Saúde, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz - FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
D O
DO
Santoro
Fundação Centro Universitário Estadual da Zona Oeste - UEZO, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
A M
AM
Cardoso
Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro - UFRJ, Instituto de Biologia, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.|Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, Netherlands.
F H
FH
Coutinho
Universidade Estadual do Rio de Janeiro - UERJ, Departamento de Bioquímica, Instituto de Biologia, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
L H
LH
Pinto
Instituto Nacional de Controle de qualidade em Saúde, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz - FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
R P
RP
Vieira
Universidade Estadual do Rio de Janeiro - UERJ, Departamento de Bioquímica, Instituto de Biologia, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
R M
RM
Albano
Instituto Nacional de Controle de qualidade em Saúde, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz - FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
M M
MM
Clementino
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001938:Brazil; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D006761:Hospitals; D011549:Pseudomonas / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D062065:Wastewater / Q000382:microbiology*; D018508:Water Purification
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D062065:Wastewater
16S rDNA clone library; Pseudomonas spp; antibiotic resistance profiles; diversity; hospital wastewater