Prevalence of <i>Escherichia coli</i> and Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria During Fresh Produce Production (Romaine Lettuce) Using Municipal Wastewater Effluents

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Abstract

High demand for food and water encourages the exploration of new water reuse programs, including treated municipal wastewater usage. However, these sources could contain high contaminant levels posing risks to public health. The objective of this study was to grow and irrigate a leafy green (romaine lettuce) with treated wastewater from a municipal wastewater treatment plant to track Escherichia coli and antibiotic-resistant microorganisms through cultivation and post-harvest storage to assess their fate and prevalence. Contamination levels found in the foliage, leachate, and soil were directly ( p < 0.05) related to E. coli concentrations in the irrigation water. Wastewater concentrations from 177 to 423 CFU ml ⁻¹ resulted in 15–25% retention in the foliage. Leachate and soil presented means of 231 and 116% retention, respectively. E. coli accumulation on the foliage was observed ( p < 0.05) and increased by over 400% during 14-day storage (4°C). From randomly selected E. coli colonies, in all four biomass types, 81 and 34% showed resistance to ampicillin and cephalothin, respectively. Reclaimed wastewater usage for leafy greens cultivation could pose potential health risks, especially considering the bacteria found have a high probability of being antibiotic resistance. Successful reuse of wastewater in agriculture will depend on appropriate mitigation and management strategies to guarantee an inexpensive, efficient, and safe water supply.

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Author and article information

Contributors

Cícero C. Pola: URI : https://loop.frontiersin.org/people/1277238/overview

Eric S. McLamore: URI : https://loop.frontiersin.org/people/1216008/overview

Terry Gentry: URI : https://loop.frontiersin.org/people/63189/overview

Raghupathy Karthikeyan: URI : https://loop.frontiersin.org/people/1185153/overview

Carmen L. Gomes: URI : https://loop.frontiersin.org/people/1203559/overview

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Front Microbiol

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Front Microbiol

Journal ID (publisher-id): Front. Microbiol.

Title: Frontiers in Microbiology

Publisher: Frontiers Media S.A.

ISSN (Electronic): 1664-302X

Publication date (Electronic): 20 May 2021

Publication date Collection: 2021

Volume: 12

Electronic Location Identifier: 660047

Affiliations

[1] ¹Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Texas A&M University , College Station, TX, United States

[2] ²Department of Mechanical Engineering, Iowa State University , Ames, IA, United States

[3] ³Department of Agricultural Sciences, Clemson University , Clemson, SC, United States

[4] ⁴Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Texas A&M University , College Station, TX, United States

Author notes

Edited by: Lisa M. Durso, United States Department of Agriculture, United States

Reviewed by: Leena Malayil, University of Maryland, United States; Xu Li, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, United States

*Correspondence: Carmen L. Gomes, carmen@ 123456iastate.edu

This article was submitted to Antimicrobials, Resistance, and Chemotherapy, a section of the journal Frontiers in Microbiology

Article

DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.660047

PMC ID: 8172605

PubMed ID: 34093474

SO-VID: a1c3d7a0-752b-49dd-ae04-10f412c1605d

License:

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

History

Date received : 28 January 2021

Date accepted : 21 April 2021

Page count

Figures: 6, Tables: 0, Equations: 0, References: 52, Pages: 11, Words: 7591

Funding

Funded by: Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI)

Award ID: Grant 2018-67016-27578

Award ID: Grant BDS-00467-15

Funded by: Minas Gerais Research Foundation (FAPEMIG)

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Prevalence of Escherichia coli and Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria During Fresh Produce Production (Romaine Lettuce) Using Municipal Wastewater Effluents

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