Compared to individual UV or chlorine disinfection, the combined UV and chlorine (i.e., UV/chlorine) can substantially promote the degradation of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in the effluent by generating radicals. However, the mechanisms of ARG degradation induced by radicals during UV/chlorine treatment remain largely unknown, limiting further enhancement of ARG degradation by process optimization. Herein, we aimed to uncover the role of different radicals in ARG degradation and the molecular mechanisms of ARG degradation by radicals in UV/chlorine process. The ClO was proven to be responsible for the enhanced ARG degradation during UV/chlorine treatment, while the other radicals (OH, Cl, and Cl2-) played a minor role. This is because ClO possessed both high steady-state concentration and high reactivity toward ARGs (rate constant: 4.29 × 1010 M-1 s-1). The ClO might collaborate with free chlorine to degrade ARG. The ClO degraded ARGs by selectively attacking guanine and thymine but failed to induce strand breakage, while chlorine could break the strand of ARGs. Ultimately, ClO cooperated with chlorine to degrade ARGs quickly by hydroxylation and chlorination of bases and produce many chlorine- and nitrogen-containing products as revealed by high-resolution mass spectrometry. The uncovered degradation mechanisms of ARGs by UV/chlorine provide useful guidelines for process optimization to achieve deep removal of effluent ARGs.
Keywords: Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs); Base damage; Chlorine oxide radical (ClO()); FT-ICR mass spectrometry; UV/chlorine.
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