Not Just Hospitals: 'Superbugs' Breed In Chinese Sewage Plants Too
Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - 12:04
in Health & Medicine
Tests conducted by scientists from Rice, Nankai and Tianjin universities at two wastewater treatment plants in northern China revealed antibiotic-resistant bacteria were not only escaping purification but also breeding and spreading. The "superbugs" were carrying New Delhi Metallo-beta-lactamase (NDM-1), a multidrug-resistant gene first identified in India in 2010, in wastewater even after being disinfected by chlorination. Significant levels of NDM-1 were found in the effluent released to the environment and even higher levels in dewatered sludge applied to soils. read more