Can chlorination co-select antibiotic-resistance genes?

• A total of 125 unique ARGs were detected from a WWTP using a high capacity qPCR technology.
• The number of unique ARGs and their copy number decreased by chlorination.
• Chlorination reduced the relative abundance of 119 ARGs and 12 MGEs.
• Only six ARGs, i.e. dfrA1, tetPB-03, tetPA, ampC-04, tetA-02, and erm(36), were enriched.
• ARGs and MGEs were more likely to be removed rather than co-selected by chlorine.

Selective pressures, such as chemical or heavy metal pollution, may co-select for bacterial antibiotic resistance in the environment. However, whether chlorination in water treatment can co-select antibiotic-resistant bacteria is controversial. In this study, high capacity quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) analysis was applied to target almost all known antibiotic-resistance genes (ARGs) (282 types) and 13 mobile genetic elements (MGEs) in bacteria detected in secondary effluents from a municipal wastewater treatment plant after chlorination. The results revealed that 125 unique ARGs were detected in non-chlorinated samples, and the number decreased (79–91 types) as the chlorine concentration was increased. Moreover, 7.49 × 104–3.92 × 107 copies/100 ml water reduction of ARGs occurred with 4 mg Cl2/l. Considering the relative abundance of ARGs (i.e., ARG copies normalized to 16S rRNA gene copies), 119 ARGs decreased in response to chlorination, whereas only six ARGs, such as dfrA1, tetPB-03, tetPA, ampC-04, tetA-02, and erm(36), were potentially enriched by 10.90-, 10.06-, 8.63-, 6.86-, 3.77-, and 1.09-fold, respectively. Furthermore, the relative abundance of 12 detected MGEs was lower after chlorination. Therefore, chlorination was effective in reducing ARGs and MGEs rather than co-selecting them.

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