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H2020Individual fellowship2021–2023

IDYEA · Antimicrobial resistance in engineered wastewater systems – Predicting the impacts of dynamic exposure levels to antimicrobial agents on AMR attenuation and amplification

Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Duration
2021-04-01 → 2023-04-15
EU contribution
€224,934
Participants
1
Scheme
MSCA-IF

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Results in brief

Antimicrobial resistance in engineered wastewater systems – Predicting the impacts of dynamic exposure levels to antimicrobial agents on AMR attenuation and amplification

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) development and spread in the aquatic environment poses a growing public health risk with wastewater treatment (WWT), being the most important but still un-optimised barrier in confronting the global water and nutrient scarcity challenges. This global issue affects both developed and developing countries and the overuse or misuse of antibiotics may make AMR the leading death cause by 2050 on the globe. As basic elements of modern urbanization and sanitation, engineered water systems and water utility infrastructures have key role in mitigating environmental risks of anthropogenic pollutants. Europe’s Water Framework Directive aims to achieve good qualitative and quantitative status of all water bodies. Challenges to the effective separation and recovery of water resources from hazardous materials, notably, antibiotic residues and AMR in WWT were recently identified. Although there is a growing research focusing on AMR, one of the shortcomings of previous studies is that AMR development was experimentally assessed at static antimicrobial exposure levels that may suffer from lack of environmental representativeness as a result of significant variations in the emission of antimicrobials in urban catchments incl. water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs). IDYEA takes on this challenge by addressing the main objectives as follows: (i) experimental modelling of dynamics in the occurrence and fate of selected antimicrobials; (ii) developing dynamic simulation models for predicting AMR spread at different time scales in WWT; and (iii) establishing of a new environmental risk assessment (ERA) framework with stronger prediction power. The main research concept is presented in Fig. 1.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union

Project objective

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) spread in the aquatic environment poses a growing public health risk with wastewater treatment (WWT), being the most important but still un-optimised barrier in confronting the global water and nutrient scarcity challenges.Europe’s Water Framework Directive aims to achieve good qualitative and quantitative status of all water bodies. Challenges to the effective separation and recovery of water resources from hazardous materials, notably, antibiotic residues and AMR in WWT were recently identified.In the past, AMR spread was experimentally assessed at static antimicrobial exposure levels that may suffer from lack of environmental representativeness as a result of significant variations in the emission of antimicrobials in urban catchments.IDYEA takes on this challenge by (i) experimental modelling of dynamics in the occurrence and fate of selected antimicrobials; and (ii) developing dynamic simulation models for predicting AMR spread at different time scales in WWT.The inter-sectorial and interdisciplinary IDYEA will be hosted at University of Bath, and supported by the Norwegian Institute for Water Research. It trains one experienced researcher in areas of process modelling, analytical chemistry, molecular microbiology and bioinformatics. IDYEA will offer excellent opportunities for mutual knowledge exchange and technology development.IDYEA’s success is based on achieving the project objectives via seven work packages, including laboratory- and full-scale experimentation, model identification and risk assessment.To provide techno-economic solutions to AMR risk assessment as well as optimised process design and operation, the expected main outcome comprises dynamic process rate and stoichiometric relations for AMR spread. IDYEA will disseminate results via public engagement, reaching out to especially young people, inspiring them to get involved with science to solve real-world problems, thus building our global water futures.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

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Data: CORDIS, © European Union