Antibiotic resistance genes in Chishui River, a tributary of the Yangtze River, China: Occurrence, seasonal variation and its relationships with antibiotics, heavy metals and microbial communities

The large-scale use and release of antibiotics may create selective pressure on antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), causing potential harm to human health. River ecosystems have long been considered repositories of antibiotics and ARGs. Therefore, the distribution characteristics and seasonal variation in antibiotics and ARGs in the surface water of the main stream and tributaries of the Chishui River were studied. The concentrations of antibiotics in the dry season and rainy season were 54.18–425.74 ng/L and 66.57–256.40 ng/L, respectively, gradually decreasing along the river direction. The results of antibiotics in the dry season and rainy season showed that livestock and poultry breeding were the main sources in the surface water of the Chishui River basin. Risk assessments indicated high risk levels of OFL in both seasons. In addition, analysis of ARGs and microbial community diversity showed that sul1 and sul3 were the main ARGs in the two seasons. The highest abundance of ARGs was 7.70 × 10 7 copies/L, and intl1 was significantly positively correlated with all resistance genes ( p < 0.01), indicating that it can significantly promote the transmission of ARGs. Proteobacteria were the dominant microorganisms in surface water, with a higher average abundance in the dry season (60.64 %) than in the rainy season (39.53 %). Finally, correlation analyses were performed between ARGs and antibiotics, microbial communities and heavy metals. The results showed that there was a significant positive correlation between ARGs and most microorganisms and heavy metals ( p < 0.01), indicating that occurrence and transmission in the environment are influenced by various environmental factors and cross-selection. In conclusion, the persistent residue and transmission of ARGs and their transfer to pathogens are a great threat to human health and deserve further study and attention.