Spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria through water pose severe health risks to society. In this context, a systematic study is reported for photocatalytic removal of multidrug resistant (MDR) Escherichia coli and related genes from water by using Alumina/ZnO heterostructures under visible light. 500 mg/L of the photocatalyst could disinfect ≈ 10⁶ CFU/mL of target bacteria in water within 240 min of visible light irradiation. Lipid peroxidation, DNA and protein leakage studies have suggested the compromisation of bacterial cell membrane which was further corroborated from electron microscopy images. MDR Escherichia coli has registered a loss of resistance towards fifteen antibiotics with a down-regulation in the antibiotic resistance genes after exposure to photocatalytic process. Proposed process was also validated for disinfection of MDR Staphylococcus haemolyticus and antibiotic susceptible Escherichia coli. Successful disinfection of fecal coliform was achieved in water samples collected from three major rivers and a waste water treatment plant. The in vivo toxicity study of the treated water on mice model has not revealed any remarkable impact on gut health. With high effectiveness in disinfecting bacteria coupled with biocompatibility of the treated water towards animal model may proffer the present technique as a propitious off-grid water disinfection technique for real-world applications.

抗生素抗性细菌通过水传播给社会带来严重的健康风险。在此背景下，报道了在可见光下使用氧化铝/氧化锌异质结构从水中光催化去除多药耐药 (MDR)大肠杆菌和相关基因的系统研究。500 mg/L 的光催化剂可以在可见光照射 240 分钟内对水中≈ 10 ⁶ CFU/mL 的目标细菌进行消毒。脂质过氧化、DNA 和蛋白质泄漏研究表明细菌细胞膜受损，电子显微镜图像进一步证实了这一点。耐多药大肠杆菌在暴露于光催化过程后，对十五种抗生素的抗性丧失，抗生素抗性基因下调。提议的过程也被验证用于 MDR溶血性葡萄球菌和抗生素敏感大肠杆菌的消毒。从三个主要河流和一个污水处理厂收集的水样中成功消毒了粪便大肠菌群。在体内处理后的水对小鼠模型的毒性研究未显示对肠道健康有任何显着影响。细菌消毒效率高，处理后的水对动物模型具有生物相容性，可以将本技术作为一种适用于实际应用的有利的离网水消毒技术。