Effects of poultry slaughterhouse wastewater on bacterial communities and the spread of antibiotic resistance genes in a receiving water body
The present study explores the bacterial community and markers of antimicrobial resistance in a poultry slaughterhouse wastewater treatment plant and along the river receiving the effluent. Samples were collected in biological triplicate in the (i) upstream river, in (ii) raw sewage and (iii) treated effluent from a wastewater treatment plant, and at (iv) three downstream points in the river. Samples were collected in two different periods, considering the high and low slaughter production of the plant. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of the removal of resistance genes by the biological treatment applied in the wastewater treatment plant and the effects of this treatment on the structure and composition of the bacterial community.