METAGENOMICS AND RESISTOME OF THE SEWAGE IN THE CITY OF BELEM, PARA, BRAZIL

Historically, bacterial diseases have plagued a large part of human populations, dueto population expansion and poor hygiene in large cities, especially in medievalEurope. When elucidating that some infections were caused by bacteria, search fortherapies against these pathogens resulted in the discovery of antibiotics, becomingthe most used form of treatment. However, intense clinical practice in prescribing thesedrugs, in addition to uncontrolled self-medication by the world population, were factorsthat contributed to the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. With the rapid spreadof resistance through the transfer of resistance genes between them, especially insewage systems, metagenomic studies make it possible to identify genes in microbialcommunities and discriminate as present local species, as it is an independent methodof cultivation.