Effects of Antibiotics on Microbial Communities Responsible for Perchlorate Degradation

Abstract

Perchlorate, a pervasive water pollutant, poses a threat to some aquatic environments. Antibiotics, as an emerging contaminant, have increasingly been found in aquatic environments in recent years. As a special co-contaminant, antibiotics modify the composition and function of microbial communities, and the biodegradation rate of perchlorate is changed in the environment. In this study, three typical antibiotics widely found in aquatic ecosystems (lincomycin (LIN), erythromycin (ETM), and sulfadiazine (SDZ)) and two input modes (once and multiple times) were selected to reveal the effects of antibiotics on perchlorate degradation and changes in the microbial community. Additionally, antibiotic resistance gene (ARG) abundance and microbial community composition were analyzed to illustrate the response of bacteria to antibiotic types and input methods by QPCR and high-throughput sequencing. The perchlorate degradation rate was inhibited by three antibiotics (LIN > ETM > SDZ) in this study. LIN and ETM had stronger inhibitory effects on perchlorate degradation, and the abundances of their ARGs increased with increasing antibiotic concentrations. With the continuous culturing and multiple inputs of antibiotics, the percentage of ARGs decreased after crossing a threshold. Additionally, the dominant degradation bacteria were different under pressure from different antibiotics. The type of the antibiotic, the background level of ARGs, and the dissemination of ARGs between bacteria were the main factors influencing the degradation system. The results presented herein will help us understand the modifications of microbial communities that occur in persistent pollutant systems contaminated with antibiotics.