Effect of UV light disinfection on antibiotic-resistant coliforms in wastewater effluents. EPA Research document. (1981) APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY, Feb. 1982, p. 371-377 Mark Meckes, EPA In 1959, Watanabe (31) discovered that some Escherichia coli strains could transfer antibiotic resistance to antibiotic-sensitive strains of Shigella spp. Subsequent research has demonstrated that bacteria carrying transmissible R-factors are responsible for the spread of multiple antibiotic resistance among members of the Enterobacteriaceae (such as E. coli, Salmonella typhi, and Shigella dysenteriae) Aeromonas and Yersinia species (4), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (21), and Vibrio cholerae (34). The percentage of coliforms transferring resistance to the antibiotic-sensitive strain varied. Several researchers have pointed out that wastewater, treated or untreated, is a primary contributor of bacteria to the aquatic ecosystem (12, 16, 17, 20, 27, 29). Studies have been conducted which demonstrate that significant numbers of multiple drug-resistant coliforms occur in rivers (17), bays (9), bathing beaches (28), and coastal canals (13). Waters contaminated by bacteria capable of transferring drug resistance are of great concern since there is the potential for transfer of antibiotic resistance to a pathogenic species.. The mean percentage of all total coliform isolates capable of transferring all or part of their antibiotic resistance (46%) was identical to that observed by Fontaine and Hoadley (10) for drug resistant fecal coliforms isolated from undisinfected municipal wastewaters. Similarly, Sturtevant and Feary (29) reported that 43% of the drug-resistant total coliforms, isolated from undisinfected municipal wastewaters (before and after biological trickling-filter treatment), were capable of transferring resistance to a sensitive strain of E. coli. It is evident from this work as well as from the work of others (10, 13-15, 29) that antibiotic resistant coliforms are entering the aquatic environment via treated municipal wastewater effluents. This work demonstrates that UV light disinfection can effectively reduce the number of total coliforms both sensitive and resistant to antibiotics in an activated sludge effluent. This work also points out that there is a significant increase in the percentage of the surviving total coliform population resistant to tetracycline and chloramphenicol after UV irradiation. This study concerned itself with UV disinfection. There is little information available which discusses the effect of other disinfectants on antibiotic-resistant organisms. Additional investigations should be conducted to determine what effect other wastewater disinfectants, such as chlorine or ozone, may have on the antibiotic resistant fraction of the bacterial population. There is an additional need to determine the sanitary significance of the results of such investigations. Multi-drug resistant bacteria (MDRB) and --- Sludge— Those most affected are the immunocompromised, elderly, and those with barrier disruptions to the skin or mucosal membranes. In the last case it may be merely from beach sand scratching the skin at the waistline of bathing suits or under wet suites, or swallowing contaminated water. ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANT PATHOGENS: A PRIMER FOR PLANNERS AND POLICY MAKE Based on wastewater industry dogma and standards, released effluent, its use in irrigation salad crops, and the land application of sewage sludge are benign and beneficial activities. If however, one reviews the current medical and scientific literature, a different picture emerges, one that raises serious questions about the benevolence of this activity and efficacy of the underlying standards. Thus, the issue takes on aspects of a political and not a scientific argument. Sources of Pathogenic Microorganisms and Their Fate during Land Application of Wastes PATHOGENS AND INFECTIOUS TOXIN PROTEINS IN SLUDGE/BIOSOLIDS Antibiotic resistant bacteria and gene transfer. Microbiol Immunol. 2001;45(5):383-6. Resistance to antibiotics in injured coliforms isolated from drinking water. Córdoba MA, Roccia IL, De Luca MM, Pezzani BC, Basualdo JA. Cátedra de Microbiología y Parasitología, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina, Republica Argentina. We studied the antibiotic sensitivity of injured coliforms isolated from drinking water of La Plata, Argentina. The antibiotic sensitivity test by the agar diffusion method were proved in: Klebsiella oxytoca (14 strains), Enterobacter aerogenes (4 strains) and Enterobacter cloacae genomic group 3 (14 strains). We found that while these impaired total coliforms were sensitive to piperacillin-tazobactam (TAZ), netilmicin (NTL), ofloxacin (OFLX), and norfloxacin (NFLX) (100%), they had resistant to aminopenicillin-sulbactam (AMS) and nitrofurantoin (NIT) (100%). The resistance to antibiotics demonstrated in these strains would point to the need to promote a rational and judicious use of antimicrobial agents while at the same time implementing a program of active vigilance aimed at ensuring the highest quality of drinking water throughout the system.