{"id":2174,"date":"2015-12-07T14:30:56","date_gmt":"2015-12-07T19:30:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/?p=2174"},"modified":"2016-03-23T04:39:09","modified_gmt":"2016-03-23T08:39:09","slug":"food-for-thought-sprinkled-with-small-amounts-of-antibiotic-residues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/2015\/12\/07\/2174\/food-for-thought-sprinkled-with-small-amounts-of-antibiotic-residues\/","title":{"rendered":"Food for Thought, Sprinkled With Small Amounts of Antibiotic Residues"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Tramates-versicolor.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2176 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Tramates-versicolor.jpg?resize=530%2C149&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Tramates versicolor\" width=\"530\" height=\"149\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Tramates-versicolor.jpg?w=640&amp;ssl=1 640w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Tramates-versicolor.jpg?resize=300%2C84&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 530px) 100vw, 530px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>80% of antibiotics worldwide are used in veterinary medicine. With only a minor fraction metabolized to inactive compounds, there are plenty of antibiotics excreted by farm animals in unchanged active form. These antibiotic residues are found in manure, in the soil onto which\u00a0manure is sprayed, tilled in, or in the wastewater and creeks that drain the pastures.\u00a0 We rely on UV light and soil microbes to further degrade the antibiotic load; indeed, many drugs are broken up and inactivated in soil by the combined action of pH, fungi\/molds, sun rays and adsorption processes.<\/p>\n<p>A problem arises with drugs that are super-inert to degradation, that lack a chromophore that could be targeted by UV light for breakdown, and when there are no soil microbes to inactivate the antibiotic.\u00a0 Even worse, waste water and sewage treatment plants depend on a sessile microflora to help with the clean-up process.\u00a0 If we flush active antibiotics into our sewage plants, the local microbiome will be killed making the entire system so much less efficient\u00a0<a href=\"#_ftn1\" name=\"_ftnref1\">[1]<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Does anybody care about the antibiotic residues in soil and water? \u00a0The European Medicines Agency (EMA) requires that companies provide an Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) for every submission.\u00a0 There are also some good folks out there who dutifully check environmental samples and report back on antibiotic levels in various places and ask some very pertinent questions, like:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>What actually is the half-life of veterinary and medicinal antibiotics in nature?<\/li>\n<li>What concentrations of antibiotics can be found in the rivers and streams, in the hospital effluent, in the farming communities or downstream from antibiotic manufacturing plants?<\/li>\n<li>What concentration of drug is found in wildlife that\u00a0grazes on land laced with a hefty dose of antibiotics? Is there accumulation of antibiotics in meat and organs as we go higher up the food chain?<\/li>\n<li>What consequences are there for resistance development when our environment is contaminated with low but measurable levels of antibiotics from many classes?<\/li>\n<li>Has there ever been regulatory action because of an unfavorable ERA rating?<\/li>\n<li>Is the public being informed about any incidents \/ accidents related to antibiotic spillage into waters causing significant contamination?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Here just some facts \u2013 call it: food for thought:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>75-80% of antibiotics used in veterinary medicine are\u00a0excreted by animals in active form <a href=\"#_ftn2\" name=\"_ftnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Fluoroquinolone (FQ) concentrations as high as 321 ng\/mL were found in waste water near swine feedlots in China <a href=\"#_ftn3\" name=\"_ftnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Urine from ceftiofur-treated cattle drives selection for cephalosporin resistant Escherichia coli in soil. Ceftiofur is a 3<sup>rd<\/sup> generation cephalosporine; its long-acting metabolite has antibiotic properties as well.<a href=\"#_ftn4\" name=\"_ftnref4\">[4]<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Quinolones and tetracyclines have half-lives in nature approaching 100 days or perhaps\u00a0longer <a href=\"#_ftn3\" name=\"_ftnref3\">[3]<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Tetracycline concentrations as high as 199 \u03bcg\/kg, were detected in agricultural soil fertilized with liquid manure in Germany\u00a0due to accumulation\u00a0over time <a href=\"#_ftn5\" name=\"_ftnref5\">[5]<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>The fluorinated ring system of FQ is not found in nature \u2013 no wonder, there are few organisms that can biodegrade it. Only Trametes versicolor, a tree fungus, and a few basidiomycetes (eg, \u00a0Gloeophyllum striatum) have the capability to inactivate ciprofloxacin\u00a0<a href=\"#_ftn6\" name=\"_ftnref6\">[6]<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Close to Haiderabad neither Trametes nor Gloeophyllum seem to be particularly prevalent; waste waters from bulk drug manufacturers&#8217; effluent, from the waste water facility itself, and from nearby lakes and wells contained antibiotics at concentrations up to and exceeding fully therapeutic levels. Ciprofloxacin levels\u00a0as high as 14 mg\/L were measured <a href=\"#_ftn7\" name=\"_ftnref7\">[7]<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you think that \u201cwhat happens in India, stays in India\u201d, I have news for you.\u00a0 Bengtsson-Palme just reported on the\u00a0new\u00a0resistance genes acquired by Swedish exchange students after returning from India (sulfonamides, B-lactams, trimethoprim, ESBL) <a href=\"#_ftn8\" name=\"_ftnref8\">[8]<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0 Well, if the outside environment\u00a0provides higher, more diverse exposure to antibiotics than our hospitals, we can give ourselves a pat on the back for a job well done, right?<\/p>\n<p>With colistin resistance reported from China as we speak, ESBLs on the rise, and carbapenem resistance increasing, It almost seems like the battle is over.\u00a0 The genie is out of the bottle, and no scientist or politician can put it back in again&#8230;even for the unlikely event that they wanted to.<\/p>\n<p><strong>References:<br \/>\n<\/strong><a href=\"#_ftnref1\" name=\"_ftn1\">[1]<\/a> Prieto, A. Degradation of the antibiotics nor\ufb02oxacin and cipro\ufb02oxacin by a white-rot fungus\u00a0and identi\ufb01cation of degradation products.\u00a0 Bioresource Technology 102:10987,\u00a02011<br \/>\n<a href=\"#_ftnref2\" name=\"_ftn2\">[2]<\/a> K.-R. Kim, G. Owens, S.-I. Kwon, K.-H. So, D.-B. Lee, and Y. S. Ok, \u201cOccurrence and environmental fate of veterinary antibiotics in the terrestrial environment,\u201d Water, Air, &amp; Soil Pollution, vol. 214, no. 1\u20134, pp. 163\u2013174, 2011<br \/>\n<a href=\"#_ftnref3\" name=\"_ftn3\">[3]<\/a> Li, J.\u00a0 Plasmid-Mediated Quinolone Resistance Genes and Antibiotic Residues in Wastewater and Soil Adjacent to Swine Feedlots: Potential Transfer to Agricultural Lands 120: 1144,\u00a02012<br \/>\n<a href=\"#_ftnref4\" name=\"_ftn4\">[4]<\/a> Call, D. Do antibiotic residues in soils play a role in amplification and transmission of antibiotic resistant bacteria in cattle populations?\u00a0 Front Microbiol. 4: 193,\u00a02013<br \/>\n<a href=\"#_ftnref5\" name=\"_ftn5\">[5]<\/a> Hamscher, G.\u00a0 Determination of persistent tetracycline residues in soil fertilized with liquid manure by high-performance liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry.\u00a0 Anal Chem. 74: 1509,\u00a02002<br \/>\n<a href=\"#_ftnref6\" name=\"_ftn6\">[6]<\/a> Wetzstein, H. \u00a0Degradation of cipro\ufb02oxacin by basidiomycetes and identi\ufb01cation of metabolites generated by the brown rot fungus Gloeophyllum striatum. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 65:1556,1999<br \/>\n<a href=\"#_ftnref7\" name=\"_ftn7\">[7]<\/a> Fick, J. Contamination of surface, ground, and drinking water from pharmaceutical production. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 28: 2522, 2009<br \/>\n<a href=\"#_ftnref8\" name=\"_ftn8\">[8]<\/a> Bengtsson-Palme, M. The human gut microbiome as a transporter of antibiotic resistance genes between continents.\u00a0 AAC Online (ahead of print 10 Aug 2015)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>80% of antibiotics worldwide are used in veterinary medicine. With only a minor fraction metabolized to inactive compounds, there are plenty of antibiotics excreted by farm animals in unchanged active form. These antibiotic residues are found in manure, in the soil onto which\u00a0manure is sprayed, tilled in, or in the <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/2015\/12\/07\/2174\/food-for-thought-sprinkled-with-small-amounts-of-antibiotic-residues\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Food for Thought, Sprinkled With Small Amounts of Antibiotic Residues<\/span><span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2176,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[227,3,18],"tags":[1271,403,1461,1458,1453,1465,42,363,625,1454,1462,1463,1464,350,1457,1583,946,1456,141,1459,1460,1455],"class_list":["post-2174","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-recent_literature","category-the_news","category-the_viewpoint","tag-allphase-pharma-consulting","tag-antibiotic-blog","tag-antibiotic-half-life-in-nature","tag-basidiomycete","tag-biodegradation-of-antibiotics","tag-ceftiofur","tag-ciprofloxacin","tag-cre","tag-ema","tag-environmental-contamination","tag-environmental-pollution","tag-environmental-risk-assessment","tag-era","tag-esbl","tag-gloeophyllum-striatum","tag-harald-reinhart","tag-resistance-development","tag-resistance-spread","tag-sulfonamide","tag-trametes-versicolor","tag-veterinary-antibiotics","tag-waste-water-contamination"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Tramates-versicolor.jpg?fit=640%2C180&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4KWFr-z4","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5289,"url":"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/2025\/09\/11\/5289\/antibiotic-use-in-veterinary-medicine\/","url_meta":{"origin":2174,"position":0},"title":"ANTIBIOTIC USE IN VETERINARY MEDICINE","author":"Harald","date":"September 11, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"A ton is a tonne, by any other name.\u00a0 A tonne, also called a metric tonne, is the equivalent of 1,000 kg.\u00a0 There are also imperial tonnes and long tonnes which have a slightly different conversion factor:\u00a0 1 tonne of either is equivalent to 1.01604691 metric tonnes. The amount of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Did you know...?&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Did you know...?","link":"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/category\/interesting_facts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Picture2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1521,"url":"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/2015\/06\/07\/1521\/cattle-and-pigs-and-chickens-oh-yeah\/","url_meta":{"origin":2174,"position":1},"title":"Cattle and Pigs and Chickens, Oh Yeah!","author":"Harald","date":"June 7, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"When the Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) Final Rule was announced earlier this month by FDA, the accompanying press release called it a \u2018major step towards judicious antibiotic use\u2019 in veterinary medicine\u00a0[1]. There are several elements which look good, at least on paper: As prescribers of any and all antibiotics it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Did you know...?&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Did you know...?","link":"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/category\/interesting_facts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"images","src":"http:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/images.jpe","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":932,"url":"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/2014\/09\/26\/932\/its-not-a-free-enterprise-market-stupid-part-1\/","url_meta":{"origin":2174,"position":2},"title":"It\u2019s Not a Free-Enterprise Market, Stupid!","author":"Harald","date":"September 26, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"The economics of developing antibacterials is a frustrating topic to address.\u00a0 There are unique aspects to the antibiotic market which sets it apart from other medicines, esp. the unique societal aspects of antibiotic use which go beyond the benefit to the individual. IDSA has spoken out in various publications (\u201cBad\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Recent Literature&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Recent Literature","link":"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/category\/recent_literature\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/freemarket-slider-copy.jpg?fit=640%2C200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/freemarket-slider-copy.jpg?fit=640%2C200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/freemarket-slider-copy.jpg?fit=640%2C200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":846,"url":"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/2014\/09\/07\/846\/growth-promotion-now-called-prophylaxis-the-logic-of-chicks\/","url_meta":{"origin":2174,"position":3},"title":"Growth Promotion Now Called Prophylaxis \u2013 The Logic of Chicks","author":"Harald","date":"September 7, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"California is getting rid of a time-honored justification for antibiotic use in veterinary medicine [1].\u00a0 No longer will it be acceptable to prescribe them for \u00a0\u201dgrowth promotion\u201d, but rather only for \u201cprophylaxis\u201d.\u00a0 Just like in humans, so it is argued, does prudent use of antibiotics have a place in prevention,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;The News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"The News","link":"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/category\/the_news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Broiler Battery","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Indiapoultry.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2370,"url":"https:\/\/allphasepharma.com\/dir\/2016\/03\/18\/2370\/overcoming-antimicrobial-resistance-a-european-report-recommends-deja-vu-action\/","url_meta":{"origin":2174,"position":4},"title":"Overcoming Antimicrobial Resistance \u2013 A European Report Recommends Deja-Vu Action","author":"Harald","date":"March 18, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Sometimes one comes across a particularly well-written policy document which summarizes the status quo of antimicrobial resistance by connecting and synthesizing data from all kinds of sources into a coherent framework. 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