Universal access to safe water, whether at households or health centres, is central to achieving the sixth sustainable development goal by 2030. A hospital-based survey was conducted to screen for antimicrobial resist...Universal access to safe water, whether at households or health centres, is central to achieving the sixth sustainable development goal by 2030. A hospital-based survey was conducted to screen for antimicrobial resistance among coliforms in samples collected from tap water (n = 54) at surgical wards in Gaza and to investigate the association with free residual chlorine and pH levels. Total coliforms (TC) were detected in 48.1% (26/54) of tested samples and FCs were detected in 25.9% (14/54). Free residual chlorine test ranged from zero to 0.2 mg/l (average: 0.08 mg/l), of which more than half of the samples (53.7%) 29/54 showed no free residual chlorine. The mean value of free residual chlorine in samples tested positive for growth on m-Endo (0.03) was lower than the mean for negative samples (0.14). The pH values were within the acceptable range (average: 7.6) and there was a statistically significant variation between the mean of pH values for samples tested positive on m-Endo (7.29) and that tested negative (7.84). Among coliform positive samples, 23.1% (6/26) had coliform isolates with resistance patterns. More than two-thirds of antimicrobial resistant (AMR) isolates were resistant to amikacin, ceftazidime, ceftriaxone, and imipenem. Moreover, 50% of the isolates were resistant to piperacillin-tazobactam. One-third (33.3%) of isolates were resistant to cefoxitin, and fosfomycin, 16.7% were resistant to ciprofloxacin, and nitrofurantoin. Intermediate resistance was shown in 16.7% of the isolates to cefoxitin and ciprofloxacin. The ESBL and carbapenem resistance genes detected in isolates were TEM (66.7%), NDM (33.3%), OXA (25%), blaCTXM (16.7%), and blaCTXM-3 (16.7%). The finding highlighted the level of contamination with AMR coliform in samples collected from tap water and pointed out the importance of managing water safety through identifying the main source of contamination, in addition to maintaining proper water disinfection at healthcare facilities for the patient, staff and environmental safety.展开更多
Digestate, the product obtained after anaerobic digestion of organic waste for biogas production, is rich in plant nutrients and might be used to fertilize crops. Wheat （Triticum spp. L.） was fertilized with digesta...Digestate, the product obtained after anaerobic digestion of organic waste for biogas production, is rich in plant nutrients and might be used to fertilize crops. Wheat （Triticum spp. L.） was fertilized with digestate, urea, or left unfertilized and cultivated in the greenhouse for 120 d. Emissions of greenhouse gasses （carbon dioxide （CO2）, methane （CH4）, and nitrous oxide （N20）） were monitored and plant growth characteristics were determined at harvest. The digestate was characterized for heavy metals, pathogens, and C and N mineralization potential in an aerobic incubation experiment. No Salmonella spp., Shigella spp., or viable eggs of helminths were detected in the digested pig slurry, but the number of faecal coliforms was as high as 3.6 ~ 104 colony-forming units （CFU） g-1 dry digestate. The concentrations of heavy metals did not surpass the upper limits established by US Environmental Protection Agency （EPA）. After 28 d, 17% of the organic C （436 g kg-1 dry digestate） and 8% of the organic N （6.92 g kg-1 dry digestate） were mineralized. Emissions of CO2 and CH4 were not significantly affected by fertilization in the wheat-cultivated soil, but digestate significantly increased the cumulative N20 emission by 5 times compared to the urea-amended soil and 63 times compared to the uncultivated unfertilized soil. It could be concluded that digestate was nutrient rich and low in heavy metals and pathogens, and did not affect emissions of CH4 and CO2 when applied to a soil cultivated with wheat, but increased emission of N20. Key Words： biodigester, C and N mineralization potential, faecal coliform, heavy metal, pathogen, pig slurry展开更多
文摘Universal access to safe water, whether at households or health centres, is central to achieving the sixth sustainable development goal by 2030. A hospital-based survey was conducted to screen for antimicrobial resistance among coliforms in samples collected from tap water (n = 54) at surgical wards in Gaza and to investigate the association with free residual chlorine and pH levels. Total coliforms (TC) were detected in 48.1% (26/54) of tested samples and FCs were detected in 25.9% (14/54). Free residual chlorine test ranged from zero to 0.2 mg/l (average: 0.08 mg/l), of which more than half of the samples (53.7%) 29/54 showed no free residual chlorine. The mean value of free residual chlorine in samples tested positive for growth on m-Endo (0.03) was lower than the mean for negative samples (0.14). The pH values were within the acceptable range (average: 7.6) and there was a statistically significant variation between the mean of pH values for samples tested positive on m-Endo (7.29) and that tested negative (7.84). Among coliform positive samples, 23.1% (6/26) had coliform isolates with resistance patterns. More than two-thirds of antimicrobial resistant (AMR) isolates were resistant to amikacin, ceftazidime, ceftriaxone, and imipenem. Moreover, 50% of the isolates were resistant to piperacillin-tazobactam. One-third (33.3%) of isolates were resistant to cefoxitin, and fosfomycin, 16.7% were resistant to ciprofloxacin, and nitrofurantoin. Intermediate resistance was shown in 16.7% of the isolates to cefoxitin and ciprofloxacin. The ESBL and carbapenem resistance genes detected in isolates were TEM (66.7%), NDM (33.3%), OXA (25%), blaCTXM (16.7%), and blaCTXM-3 (16.7%). The finding highlighted the level of contamination with AMR coliform in samples collected from tap water and pointed out the importance of managing water safety through identifying the main source of contamination, in addition to maintaining proper water disinfection at healthcare facilities for the patient, staff and environmental safety.
文摘Digestate, the product obtained after anaerobic digestion of organic waste for biogas production, is rich in plant nutrients and might be used to fertilize crops. Wheat （Triticum spp. L.） was fertilized with digestate, urea, or left unfertilized and cultivated in the greenhouse for 120 d. Emissions of greenhouse gasses （carbon dioxide （CO2）, methane （CH4）, and nitrous oxide （N20）） were monitored and plant growth characteristics were determined at harvest. The digestate was characterized for heavy metals, pathogens, and C and N mineralization potential in an aerobic incubation experiment. No Salmonella spp., Shigella spp., or viable eggs of helminths were detected in the digested pig slurry, but the number of faecal coliforms was as high as 3.6 ~ 104 colony-forming units （CFU） g-1 dry digestate. The concentrations of heavy metals did not surpass the upper limits established by US Environmental Protection Agency （EPA）. After 28 d, 17% of the organic C （436 g kg-1 dry digestate） and 8% of the organic N （6.92 g kg-1 dry digestate） were mineralized. Emissions of CO2 and CH4 were not significantly affected by fertilization in the wheat-cultivated soil, but digestate significantly increased the cumulative N20 emission by 5 times compared to the urea-amended soil and 63 times compared to the uncultivated unfertilized soil. It could be concluded that digestate was nutrient rich and low in heavy metals and pathogens, and did not affect emissions of CH4 and CO2 when applied to a soil cultivated with wheat, but increased emission of N20. Key Words： biodigester, C and N mineralization potential, faecal coliform, heavy metal, pathogen, pig slurry
