Directional lactic acid production could mitigate antibiotic and ARGs pollution.

Area of Science:

• Environmental microbiology
• Biotechnology
• Waste management

Background:

• Antibiotic residues in animal manure pose environmental risks.
• The impact of these residues on value-added processes like directional lactic acid production (DLAP) is not well understood.
• Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are key players in fermentation processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the degradation of Sulfachloropyridazine (SCP) by common LAB.
• To determine the degradation pathways and the effect on antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs).
• To assess the feasibility of DLAP for antibiotic and ARG remediation.

Main Methods:

• Pure cultures of four LAB species (Lactobacillus bulgaricus, L. acidophilus, L. plantarum, L. casei) were used.
• SCP degradation rates and pathways were analyzed.
• The reduction of specific ARGs (sul1, sul2, sul3, sulA, intI1, tnpA) was quantified.

Main Results:

• LAB significantly reduced ARGs, including sul1, sul2, sul3, sulA, intI1, and tnpA.
• SCP degradation rates by LAB ranged from 84.0% to 90.3% at 50 mg/L.
• SCP degradation involved similar key functions across LAB species, yielding less toxic intermediates.

Conclusions:

• LAB effectively degrade SCP and reduce ARGs, indicating their potential in bioremediation.
• The DLAP process shows promise for managing antibiotic and ARG contamination in animal manure.
• This research provides a basis for optimizing DLAP for environmental decontamination.