Multi-Dimensional Elimination of β-Lactams in the Rural Wetland: Molecule Design and Screening for More Antibacterial and Degradable Substitutes

Abstract

Restricted economic conditions and limited sewage treatment facilities in rural areas lead to the discharge of small-scale breeding wastewater containing higher values of residual beta-lactam antibiotics (β-lactams), which seriously threatens the aquatic environment. In this paper, molecular docking and a comprehensive method were performed to quantify and fit the source modification for the combined biodegradation of β-lactams. Using penicillin (PNC) as the target molecule, combined with contour maps for substitute modification, a three-dimensional quantitative structure–activity relationship (3D-QSAR) model was constructed for the high-performance combined biodegradation of β-lactams. The selected candidate with better environmental friendliness, functionality, and high performance was screened. By using the homology modeling algorithms, the mutant penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) of Escherichia coli were constructed to have antibacterial resistance against β-lactams. The molecular docking was applied to obtain the target substitute by analyzing the degree of antibacterial resistance of β-lactam substitute. The combined biodegradation of β-lactams and substitute in the constructed wetland (CW) by different wetland plant root secretions was studied using molecular dynamics simulations. The result showed a 49.28% higher biodegradation of the substitutes than PNC when the combined wetland plant species of Eichhornia crassipes, Phragmites australis, and Canna indica L. were employed.