ENVIRONMENTAL FATE AND INFLUENCING MECHANISMS OF ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE GENES IN URBAN FOOD WASTE MULTIDIMENSIONAL SYSTEMS

Abstract

Environmental dimension of antibiotic resistance has become one of the most serious health crisis that we must tackle together worldwide. Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are bioactive emerging contaminants. Food waste is nutrient-rich, prone to spoilage, breeding bacteria, and aerosolization, leading to the spread of ARGs not only in the whole chain of municipal solid waste collection, transportation, treatment, and reuse, but also in multidimensional media such as PM2.5, food waste, leachate, soil, and vegetables. In this study, the spatiotemporal distribution of ARGs in the food waste sources-transfer stations-treatment plant-soil-vegetable chain and multi-media of PM2.5-food waste-leachate were studied in Shanghai. The removal behavior of ARGs from food waste and leachate by different biological treatment and membrane filtration processes were investigated. Moreover, a framework for assessing the relative risk burden and health risk of ARGs was proposed. Finally, driving mechanisms of abiotic and biotic factors on the fate of ARGs were explored by structural equation models. Overall, this study aimed to provide some scientific and technical knowledge on the fate, control and risk of ARGs for improving city management and safeguarding public health.