Assessing antibiotic sorption in soil: a literature review and new case studies on sulfonamides and macrolides

Abstract

The increased use of veterinary antibiotics in modern agriculture for therapeutic uses and growth promotion has raised concern regarding the environmental impacts of antibiotic residues in soil and water. The mobility and transport of antibiotics in the environment depends on their sorption behavior, which is typically predicted by extrapolating from an experimentally determined soil-water distribution coefficient (Kd). Accurate determination of Kd values is important in order to better predict the environmental fate of antibiotics. In this paper, we examine different analytical approaches in assessing Kd of two major classes of veterinary antibiotics (sulfonamides and macrolides) and compare the existing literature data with experimental data obtained in our laboratory. While environmental parameters such as soil pH and organic matter content are the most significant factors that affect the sorption of antibiotics in soil, it is important to consider the concentrations used, the analytical method employed, and the transformations that can occur when determining Kd values. Application of solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry can facilitate accurate determination of Kd at environmentally relevant concentrations. Because the bioavailability of antibiotics in soil depends on their sorption behavior, it is important to examine current practices in assessing their mobility in soil.

Effect of composting and soil type on dissipation of veterinary antibiotics in land-applied manures

“…It has been shown that antibiotic degradation is typically catalyzed by different extracellular hydrolytic enzymes (protease, lipase, and cellulose) released by microorganisms, mainly in the aqueous phase of soil systems (Thiele-Bruhn, 2003). Therefore, the overall dissipation rate of antibiotics is largely affected by their hydrophilicity (Otker and Akmehmet-Balcioglu, 2005;Wegst-Uhrich et al, 2014). Accordingly, the observed order of dissipation rate constants was consistent with the order of the water solubility of these three compounds: (Table S1).…”

“…Statistically significant differences were not observed for dissipation of manure-borne antibiotics among different types of soil receiving manure application (Table 3 and Table S4). Soil properties, such as pH, organic matter content, and clay content theoretically could affect the partition coefficient of antibiotics (Gao and Pedersen, 2010;Wegst-Uhrich et al, 2014) and, therefore, affect the dissipation of antibiotics in soils. In particular, hydrophobic interactions between chemicals and the organic matter is considered to be a predominant mechanism of sorption .…”

“…Chemical properties of the antibiotics can also influence their interactions with soil minerals and organic matter (Otker and Akmehmet-Balcioglu, 2005;Wegst-Uhrich et al, 2014). To date, investigation of the fate of antibiotics in soils has largely been conducted using antibiotic-spiked soils or soils mixed with antibiotic-spiked manure (Carlson and Mabury, 2006;Fang et al, 2014;Pan and Chu, 2016).…”

Impacts of compound properties and sediment characteristics on the sorption behaviour of pharmaceuticals in aquatic systems

“…The relationships with Dow is likely explained by hydrophobic interactions of the neutral species with sediment organic matter [43,57].…”

Antibiotic residues and resistance in the environment

“…For aminoglycosides and beta-lactams reliable data are lacking. Detailed reviews on the sorption behavior of several antibiotics are available (Tolls, 2001;Thiele-Bruhn, 2003;Wegst-Uhrich, 2014). …”