Release of Antibiotic-Resistance Genes from Hospitals and a Wastewater Treatment Plant in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

A recent study highlights the significant role of hospitals and wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) as sources of antibiotic-resistance genes (ARGs) in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. The research detected clinically relevant ARGs, including sul1, tet(B), blaCTX-M, blaNDM-1, and qnrS, along with a class one integron gene (intI1), in urban rivers, hospitals, and municipal wastewater. Concentrations of these genes in WWTP and hospital effluents ranged from 6.2 to 12.5 log10 copies per liter, underscoring their potential environmental dissemination. Notably, the blaNDM-1 gene was found to likely spread through untreated hospital wastewater, while other ARGs showed significant positive correlations with intI1, suggesting its role in ARG transfer. The study also emphasizes the need for further research on ARGs in drinking water sources due to groundwater-surface water interactions.

Thakali, O., Malla, B., Tandukar, S., Sthapit, N., Raya, S., Furukawa, T., Sei, K., Sherchand, J. B., & Haramoto, E. (2021). Release of Antibiotic-Resistance Genes from Hospitals and a Wastewater Treatment Plant in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. Water, 13(19), 2733. https://doi.org/10.3390/w13192733