Wastewater effluent is a major source of extracellular antibiotic resistance genes (eArGs) in the aquatic environment, a threat to human health and biosecurity. However, little is known about the extent to which organic matter in the wastewater effluent (EfOM) might contribute to photosensitized oxidation of eArGs. Triplet states of EfOM were found to dominate the degradation of eArGs (accounting for up to 85%). Photo-oxidation proceeded mainly via proton-coupled electron transfer reactions. They broke plasmid strands and damaged bases. O2•- was also involved, and it coupled with the reactions' intermediate radicals of eArGs. The second-order reaction rates of blaTEM-1 and tet-A segments (209-216 bps) with the triplet state of 4-carboxybenzophenone were calculated to be (2.61-2.75) × 108 M-1 s-1. Besides as photosensitizers, the antioxidant moieties in EfOM also acted as quenchers to revert intermediate radicals back to their original forms, reducing the rate of photodegradation. However, the terrestrial origin natural organic matter was unable to photosensitize because it formed less triplets, especially high-energy triplets, so its inhibitory effects predominated. This study advances our understanding of the role of EfOM in the photo-oxidation of eArGs and the difference between EfOM and terrestrial-origin natural organic matter.
Keywords: extracellular antibiotic resistance genes (eArGs); photodegradation; triplet excited states; wastewater effluent organic matter; wastewater treatment.