Earthworms highly increase ciprofloxacin mineralization in soils

This report shows that earthworms increase up to eight times the mineralization of the antibiotic ciprofloxacin in soils. Antibiotics are extensively used and disseminated in environmental compartments. Antibiotics may enter food chains and thus induce resistance in environmental and human commensal bacteria. The antibiotic ciprofloxacin is suspected to induce significant adverse effects on soil microbial processes, with possible consequences on soil functions. Nevertheless, little is known concerning the fate of ciprofloxacin in soils. Here, we studied the mineralization and distribution of the 2-¹⁴C]-ciprofloxacin in soil–plant–water systems where ciprofloxacin was applied by amendment of spiked pig slurry. Results show that a very weak microbial mineralization of the antibiotic, lower than 0.01 %, occurred after 84 days of incubation. By contrast, the addition of earthworms increased from 5 to 8 times ciprofloxacin mineralization during the following 84 days incubation. In addition, earthworm activity induced the transfer of 40 % of radioactive compounds from the upper to the lower layer of soil, modifying the distribution of the antibiotic within the soil profile. We conclude that earthworms can be used efficiently to mineralize ciprofloxacin and modify its distribution in soils. As a consequence, earthworms change the exposure of soil organisms to ciprofloxacin, and, in turn, the eco-toxicological impact of the antibiotic.