Tracking Age-Linked Antibiotic Resistance Patterns through Building-Level Wastewater Analysis

Area of Science:

• Environmental microbiology
• Public health
• Genomics

Background:

• Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing global health threat.
• Understanding AMR in diverse urban populations is crucial for effective surveillance.
• Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) offers a method to monitor AMR in specific communities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate age-specific variations in the resistome and mobilome using building-level WBE.
• To compare bacterial communities, antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), and mobile genetic elements (MGEs) across different demographic settings.
• To identify potential public health risks associated with AMR in urban populations.

Main Methods:

• Building-level wastewater sampling from an elementary school, university residence, and elderly care facility.
• Metagenomic sequencing to analyze bacterial communities, ARGs, and MGEs.
• Statistical analysis to identify correlations between bacterial genera and ARGs.

Main Results:

• Significant age-linked variations in ARG abundance and diversity were observed.
• Wastewater from the elementary school showed the highest ARG abundance; the elderly care facility had the highest ARG diversity.
• Bacterial pathogens were more prevalent in school and elderly care facility samples, and gut microbiota were primary reservoirs for ARGs.

Conclusions:

• Localized WBE combined with metagenomics can reveal demographic-specific AMR patterns.
• Findings provide actionable evidence for targeted AMR surveillance and intervention strategies.
• The gut microbiota plays a significant role in the dissemination of antibiotic resistance.