Contribution of Manure-Spreading Operations to Bioaerosols and Antibiotic Resistance Genes’ Emission

Abstract

Manure spreading from farm animals can release antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) carrying antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) into the air, posing a potential threat to human and animal health due to the intensive use of antibiotics in the livestock industry. This study analyzed the effect of different manure types and spreading methods on airborne bacterial emissions and antibiotic resistance genes in a controlled setting. Cow, poultry manure, and pig slurry were spread in a confined environment using two types of spreaders (splash plate and dribble bar), and the resulting emissions were collected before, during, and after spreading using high-volume air samplers coupled to a particle counter. Total bacteria, fecal indicators, and a total of 38 different subtypes of ARGs were further quantified by qPCR. Spreading poultry manure resulted in the highest emission rates of total bacteria (1011 16S gene copies/kg manure spread), Archaea (106 16S gene copies/kg manure), Enterococcus (105 16S gene copies/kg manure), and E. coli (104 16S gene copies/kg manure), followed by cow manure and pig slurry with splash plates and the dribble bar. Manure spreading was associated with the highest rates of airborne aminoglycoside genes for cow and poultry (106 gene copies/kg manure), followed by pig slurry (104 gene copies/kg manure). This study shows that the type of manure and spreading equipment can affect the emission rates of airborne bacteria, and ARGs.