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Antibiotics in the Environment: Raising the Awareness of Humans, Animals,...
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Antibiotics in the Environment: Raising the Awareness of Humans, Animals, and General Public Health

A special issue of Antibiotics (ISSN 2079-6382).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 10197

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Nikola Puvača

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering Management in Biotechnology, Faculty of Economics and Engineering Management in Novi Sad, University Business Academy in Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
Interests: animal science; nutrition; antimicrobials; antibiotic alternatives; veterinary; biotechnology; genetics; toxicology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Infectious diseases are increasingly difficult to treat with antibiotics due to the resistance of bacteria to the applied antibiotics. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is described by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the greatest threats to public health in the 21st century. Antibiotics can work in different ways. The AMR develops when the strongest bacteria survive the antibiotic attack. According to data from the WHO, around 700,000 people die annually in the world precisely as a result of AMR. The trend of increasing the use of antibiotics has been recorded for years, and during the COVID-19 pandemic, uncontrolled use, as well as the purchase of antibiotics and other drugs, were observed. Research has shown that people often use antibiotics without consulting their chosen doctor, or their veterinarian when the treatment of animals comes into question, and they often keep antibiotics at home and use them without a prescription. In addition to food, people and animals consume water in large quantities every day, and for this reason, drinking water can be considered a potential hazard to humans, animals, general public health, and the environment. Antibiotics can enter the water supply chain in several ways: a) by throwing unnecessary drugs into the toilet; b) by throwing out unabsorbed drugs through urine and faeces into the sewage system. To exacerbate this problem, it has been scientifically proven that some drugs remain in the water even after wastewater treatment and filtration in water purification plants. Bearing in mind the above, the goal of this Special Issue is to gather researchers and scientists who are dealing with the identification of antibiotics in water or other matrixes, medical doctors, veterinarians, microbiologists, virologists, and from all other related fields, to inform and educate the population about the emergence of AMR and to raise awareness of the danger to public health and the environment.

Dr. Nikola Puvača
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Antibiotics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 1225 KiB  
Article
Antibiotic Resistance and Probiotics: Knowledge Gaps, Market Overview and Preliminary Screening
by Gordana Zavišić, Milka Popović, Svetlana Stojkov, Deana Medić, Vera Gusman, Nataša Jovanović Lješković and Aleksandra Jovanović Galović
Antibiotics 2023, 12(8), 1281; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12081281 - 03 Aug 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1926
Abstract
Probiotics are among those products, the use of which is increasing, and they are available primarily as food/dietary supplements, as well as in the form of medicines. This study aims to assess the attitudes and practices of health professionals and students of health [...] Read more.
Probiotics are among those products, the use of which is increasing, and they are available primarily as food/dietary supplements, as well as in the form of medicines. This study aims to assess the attitudes and practices of health professionals and students of health sciences, give a short overview of the probiotics currently on the market, and conduct a screening of five food supplements and one drug with respect to antibiotic resistance. Nearly half of the respondents in our survey state that probiotics have no side effects, while only 6.3% believe that the use of probiotics can lead to antibiotic resistance. In addition, more than 40% of the participants throw unused probiotics into municipal waste. The market analysis results indicate that probiotic products on the Serbian market have highly variable CFU counts, while the declared health claims cover numerous beneficial health effects, and they are sometimes even registered as medicines. Lactobacilli are frequently present in probiotic supplements, and are sold in pharmacies and online. The experimental results showed that antibiotic resistance is present in different types of lactobacilli in probiotic products. The risk of using probiotics, regardless of their beneficial health effects, should be taken into account in the future. An update to the regulations governing probiotics, including a stipulation for antimicrobial resistance (AMR) testing, should be established, and guidelines for their proper use and disposal put into place. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antibiotics in the Environment: Raising the Awareness of Humans, Animals, and General Public Health)
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18 pages, 2406 KiB  
Article
Whole-Genome Sequencing Snapshot of Clinically Relevant Carbapenem-Resistant Gram-Negative Bacteria from Wastewater in Serbia
by Ivana Cirkovic, Bruno H. Muller, Ana Janjusevic, Patrick Mollon, Valérie Istier, Caroline Mirande-Meunier and Snezana Brkic
Antibiotics 2023, 12(2), 350; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12020350 - 08 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2078
Abstract
Wastewater (WW) is considered a source of antibiotic-resistant bacteria with clinical relevance and may, thus, be important for their dissemination into the environment, especially in countries with poor WW treatment. To obtain an overview of the occurrence and characteristics of carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacteria [...] Read more.
Wastewater (WW) is considered a source of antibiotic-resistant bacteria with clinical relevance and may, thus, be important for their dissemination into the environment, especially in countries with poor WW treatment. To obtain an overview of the occurrence and characteristics of carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (CR-GNB) in WW of Belgrade, we investigated samples from the four main sewer outlets prior to effluent into international rivers, the Sava and the Danube. Thirty-four CR-GNB isolates were selected for antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) and whole-genome sequencing (WGS). AST revealed that all isolates were multidrug-resistant. WGS showed that they belonged to eight different species and 25 different sequence types (STs), seven of which were new. ST101 K. pneumoniae (blaCTX-M-15/blaOXA-48) with novel plasmid p101_srb was the most frequent isolate, detected at nearly all the sampling sites. The most frequent resistance genes to aminoglycosides, quinolones, trimethroprim-sulfamethoxazole, tetracycline and fosfomycin were aac(6′)-Ib-cr (55.9%), oqxA (32.3%), dfrA14 (47.1%), sul1 (52.9%), tet(A) (23.5%) and fosA (50%), respectively. Acquired resistance to colistin via chromosomal-mediated mechanisms was detected in K. pneumoniae (mutations in mgrB and basRS) and P. aeruginosa (mutation in basRS), while a plasmid-mediated mechanism was confirmed in the E. cloacae complex (mcr-9.1 gene). The highest number of virulence genes (>300) was recorded in P. aeruginosa isolates. Further research is needed to systematically track the occurrence and distribution of these bacteria so as to mitigate their threat. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antibiotics in the Environment: Raising the Awareness of Humans, Animals, and General Public Health)
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11 pages, 567 KiB  
Article
Microbial Resistance to Antibiotics and Biofilm Formation of Bacterial Isolates from Different Carp Species and Risk Assessment for Public Health
by Nikola Puvača, Dragana Ljubojević Pelić, Miloš Pelić, Vojislava Bursić, Vincenzo Tufarelli, Luca Piemontese and Gorica Vuković
Antibiotics 2023, 12(1), 143; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12010143 - 10 Jan 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1779
Abstract
The aim of this research was to investigate the effects of biofilm on antibiotic resistance of the bacterial isolates present in fish meat and to assess the risk of antibiotic residues for public health. Common carp, silver carp and grass carp fishes were [...] Read more.
The aim of this research was to investigate the effects of biofilm on antibiotic resistance of the bacterial isolates present in fish meat and to assess the risk of antibiotic residues for public health. Common carp, silver carp and grass carp fishes were purchased from retail stores for an in vitro biofilm investigation and a drug-resistant pattern determination. In all samples, up to 104 CFU/g of bacteria, such as Escherichia coli, Aeromonas hydrophila, Shewanella putrefaciens, Vibrio spp. and Staphylococcus spp., were observed. Isolates from the samples and their biofilms were subjected to an antibiogram assay using antibiotics such as amoxicillin, ampicillin, cefotaxime, ciprofloxacin, chloramphenicol, gentamicin, streptomycin, tetracycline and trimethoprim. Obtained results showed that some of the isolates were sensitive to antibiotics and some were resistant. Results of LC-MS/MS analysis showed that antibiotics residues were present in fish samples in the range between 4.9 and 199.4 µg/kg, with a total sum of 417.1 µg/kg. Estimated daily intake (EDI) was established to be 0.274 μg/kg of body weight/day for men and 0.332 μg/kg of body weight/day for women, with an acceptable daily intake (ADI) of 8.5 and 7.0 µg/kg of body weight/day for men and women, respectively. The results of the present study, therefore, highlight the safe consumption of fresh fish. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antibiotics in the Environment: Raising the Awareness of Humans, Animals, and General Public Health)
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15 pages, 2402 KiB  
Article
Is There a Relationship between Antimicrobial Use and Antibiotic Resistance of the Most Common Mastitis Pathogens in Dairy Cows?
by Zorana Kovačević, Marko Samardžija, Olga Horvat, Dragana Tomanić, Miodrag Radinović, Katarina Bijelić, Annamaria Galfi Vukomanović and Nebojša Kladar
Antibiotics 2023, 12(1), 3; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12010003 - 20 Dec 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2100
Abstract
Antimicrobials have had an important impact on animal health and production performance. However, non-prudent antimicrobial use (AMU) in food producing animals is considered to contribute to the emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with a potential impact on both animal and public health. Considering [...] Read more.
Antimicrobials have had an important impact on animal health and production performance. However, non-prudent antimicrobial use (AMU) in food producing animals is considered to contribute to the emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with a potential impact on both animal and public health. Considering the global importance of AMR, and the threats and challenges posed by mastitis and mastitis therapy in livestock production, the main objective of this study was to quantify AMU on three dairy farms in Serbia and to examine whether there is an association between AMU and the emergence of antimicrobial resistance of mastitis-associated pathogens. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed by the disk diffusion method using causative agents isolated from the milk samples of 247 dairy cows. AMU data were obtained for a one-year period (May 2021 to May 2022) based on antibiotic prescriptions listed in electronic databases kept by farm veterinarians. To estimate antimicrobial drug exposure at the farm level, the veterinary drug Defined Daily Dose was calculated by multiplying the total amount of antibiotic used on the farms during the study period by the quantity of antibiotic in the administered drug and number of original drug packages used. The results on the association between the use of common antibiotics in mastitis treatment and AMR of isolated mastitis-associated pathogens confirm a pattern that could raise awareness of the importance of this aspect of good veterinary and clinical practice to combat the global threat of AMR. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antibiotics in the Environment: Raising the Awareness of Humans, Animals, and General Public Health)
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12 pages, 646 KiB  
Article
Prevalence, Tetracycline Resistance and Tet(O) Gene Identification in Pathogenic Campylobacter Strains Isolated from Chickens in Retail Markets of Lima, Peru
by Christian Benites, Diego Anampa, Domingo Torres, Ivette Avalos, Miguel Rojas, Carlos Conte and César Lázaro
Antibiotics 2022, 11(11), 1580; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics11111580 - 09 Nov 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1520
Abstract
Background: In this study, we aimed to estimate the prevalence, tetracycline resistance and presence of Tet(O) in Campylobacter strains isolated from chicken in markets of Lima, Peru. Methods: A total of 250 chicken samples were obtained from traditional markets (skin, n = 120) [...] Read more.
Background: In this study, we aimed to estimate the prevalence, tetracycline resistance and presence of Tet(O) in Campylobacter strains isolated from chicken in markets of Lima, Peru. Methods: A total of 250 chicken samples were obtained from traditional markets (skin, n = 120) and supermarkets (meat, n = 130). Samples were subjected to microbiological assays for identification of Campylobacter spp. according to ISO 10272-2017, and the isolates were then submitted to species identification by PCR. Phenotypic resistance to tetracyclines was assessed by the Kirby–Bauer test, and the presence of the Tet(O) gene was determined by PCR. Results: A significantly higher prevalence (p < 0.0001) of Campylobacter coli in skin samples from traditional markets (97.5%) than in meat samples from supermarkets (36.2%) was observed. On the other hand, Campylobacter jejuni was confirmed only in 3.1% of meat samples. All Campylobacter species isolated from skin and meat samples were phenotypically resistant to tetracyclines; however, the presence of the Tet(O) gene in C. coli was identified in 76.9% and 66.0% of skin and meat samples, no significant statistical difference (p = 0.1488) was found between these prevalence. All C. jejuni isolated from chicken meat samples from supermarkets were positive for Tet(O) gene. Conclusions: This study confirms the high prevalence of C. coli isolated from chicken sold in traditional markets and supermarkets in Lima, Peru, and in more than 70% of these strains, phenotypic resistance to tetracyclines could be linked with expression of the Tet(O) gene. It is necessary to evaluate other genes involved in resistance to tetracyclines and other groups of antibiotics in campylobacter strains isolated from chicken meat. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antibiotics in the Environment: Raising the Awareness of Humans, Animals, and General Public Health)
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