Residual antibiotics, antibiotic resistant superbugs and antibiotic resistance genes in surface water catchments: Public health impact

Antibiotics are released to the surface water through different routes, like for example the wastewater treatment plants, from human and animal metabolic waste, agriculture run off, industrial antibiotic waste. The release of the antibiotics to the water catchment and/or the environments in sub-lethal concentrations for the microorganisms lead to the emergence of antibiotic resistance (AR) and selection for antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). The bacteria utilize their quorum sensing to form biofilm within which ARGs are transferred from antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) to the susceptible strains, conferring resistance on them. This has contributed substantially to the growing trend of resistance from multiple antibiotic resistance to extended spectrum resistance, extreme resistance and recently to total antibiotic resistance. The antibiotics, ARB, ARGs are sometimes internalized into the crops irrigated with the surface water returning the bacteria to human in a difficult to control form. While quorum quenching strategy is being advocated during treatment of wastewater to disrupt biofilm as well as the spread of resistance, intermittent check for effectiveness of treatment of wastewater before release into receiving water bodies is hereby advocated. To achieve this, there is the need for better measurements, surveillance and follow-up and thereby the further needs to incorporate more integrative (multidisciplinary) approaches and state of the art tools, for appropriate detection and action. This presentation is to critically review the effect of antibiotic release, ARGs, ARB in water catchment on other water related applications in Southern African countries in relation to other part of the world.