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Opportunistic taxa promote the proliferation of ARGs
Summary
Scientists studying soil found that when it's exposed to microplastics (both regular plastic and "biodegradable" plastic) plus repeated doses of tetracycline antibiotics, certain fast-growing "opportunistic" microbes take advantage of the disturbance and help spread antibiotic-resistance genes to other bacteria. This matters because antibiotic resistance spreading through soil, including from plastics marketed as eco-friendly, could make its way into our food and water, potentially making bacterial infections harder to treat in the future.
Edaphic antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) have garnered worldwide concern, yet mechanisms by which specific microbial taxa drive ARG variation under anthropogenic stress remain unclear. Here we show how opportunistic and sensitive taxa contribute to ARG propagation in soil microcosms exposed to conventional (polyethylene, PE) or biodegradable (polybutylene adipate terephthalate, PBAT) microplastics and four-generation tetracyclines.