Antibiotic resistance genes in surface water and groundwater from mining affected environments

Mining activities are known to generate a large amount of mine tailings and add mine drainage which contain varieties of heavy metals. Heavy metals play an important role in co-selection for bacterial antibiotic resistance. However. the characteristics of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in mining-affected water environments are still unclear. Here we investigated the pollution of metals, profiles of ARCs, mobile genetic elements (MGEs) and microbial community in mining-affected surface water and groundwater. The results showed that in the tested water samples, the concentrations of Zn and Mn were the highest, and Ni was the lowest. Higher abundances of ARGs with great proportion of sulfonamides, chloramphenicols and tetracyclines resistance genes were found in mining-affected water when compared with those without mining activities. Additionally, there were positive correlations between heavy metals (especially Ni, Zn and Mn) and these ARGs. Linear regression analysis suggested that MGEs were positively correlated with ARGs. In addition, total phosphorus was correlated with ARGs (p < 0.05). The microbial community was different between the mining-affected water and the reference (p <0.05). Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Actinobacteria were dominant phyla in the surface water and groundwater. Network analysis showed that many ARGs were significantly associated with these dominant bacteria, which suggested they might be potential hosts for these ARGs. These findings provide a clear evidence that the mining activities in the study area had a significant impact on surface water and groundwater to different degrees. (C) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Mining activities are known to generate a large amount of mine tailings and mine drainage containing various heavy metals, which can lead to increased bacterial antibiotic resistance. This study found higher abundances of antibiotic resistance genes in mining-affected water, especially sulfonamides, chloramphenicols, and tetracyclines resistance genes, with positive correlations between heavy metals and ARGs. Additionally, the microbial community composition differed between mining-affected water and reference water, with certain dominant phyla being identified as potential hosts for the ARGs.