Accelerated adsorption of tetracyclines and microbes with FeOn(OH)m modified oyster shell: Its application on biotransformation of oxytetracycline in anaerobic enrichment culture

Due to the persistence in residue and the emission to environment, antibiotics have become the emerging contaminants. Tetracyclines, as the largest amount of antibiotics in the breeding industry, were investigated in this study. For eliminating the tetracyclines, anaerobic culture was enriched from livestock waste after four generations and FeOn(OH)m modified oyster shell powders (OSPs) were amended into the enrichment culture as auxiliary method. Tetracycline and oxytetracycline were selected as the model compounds. The adsorption models (Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms) of tetracycline and microbes on OSPs were simulated respectively. With the addition of FeOn(OH)m modified OSPs, the transformation efficiency of oxytetracycline achieved 81.5% after 22 days' incubation, approximately 1.85 times higher than the 4th generation (G-IV) enrichment culture without modified OSPs. Dehydration, demethylation, dehydroxylation and decarboxylation took place under anaerobic condition, inferred from the detected metabolites transformed from oxytetracycline. Genus Methanosarcina and two operational taxonomic units (OTUs) assigned to order Clostridiales, showed an increasing trend on abundance, indicating the contribution to transformation of oxytetracycline. Therefore, the FeOn(OH)m modified OSPs and enrichment culture can accelerate the transformation of oxytetracycline simultaneously, indicating a promising utilization not only for waste water system but also for antibiotic contaminated biomass treatment.

Automated summary

This study investigated the transformation of oxytetracycline using anaerobic culture enriched from livestock waste and FeOn(OH)m modified oyster shell powders, which significantly increased the transformation efficiency. The research elucidated the transformation mechanism under anaerobic conditions and the roles of microbial populations, suggesting a promising strategy for antibiotic contaminated biomass treatment.