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UV-aging of microplastics increases proximal ARG donor-recipient adsorption and leaching of chemicals that synergistically enhance antibiotic resistance propagation
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Researchers found that UV-aged microplastics are significantly better at adsorbing bacteria and genetic material than fresh ones, boosting the transfer of antibiotic resistance genes by up to nearly fivefold. The aging process also caused the plastics to release organic chemicals that made bacteria more permeable and receptive to gene transfer. The study highlights an overlooked way that weathered microplastics in the environment could accelerate the spread of antibiotic resistance.
Despite growing attention to environmental pollution by microplastics (MP), the effects of MP aging on bacterial horizontal gene transfer (HGT) have not been systematically investigated. Here, we used UV-aged polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) to investigate how aging affects antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) transfer efficiency from various ARG vectors to recipient bacteria. The adsorption capacity of MP (20-day UV-aged PS-MPs) towards E. coli (harboring plasmid-borne bla), plasmid pET29 (harboring bla) and phage lambda (carrying the aphA1 ARG) increased by 6.6-, 5.2- and 8.3-fold, respectively, relative to pristine PS-MPs (MP), due to increased specific surface area and affinity for these ARG vectors. Moreover, MP released more organic compounds (TOC 1.6 mg/g-MP, versus 0.2 mg/g-MP in 4 h) -possibly depolymerization byproducts (verified by GC-MS), which induced intracellular ROS generation, increased cell permeability and upregulated HGT associated genes. Accordingly, MP enhanced ARG transfer frequency from E. coli, plasmid pET29 and phage lambda (relative to MP) by 1.3-, 4.7- and 3.5-fold, respectively. The Bliss independence model infers that higher bacterial adsorption and exposure to chemicals released during MP aging synergistically enhanced ARG transfer. This underscores the need to assess the significance of this overlooked phenomenon to the environmental dissemination of antibiotic resistance and other HGT processes.
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This review explores how the aging of microplastics in the environment affects their ability to harbor antibiotic resistance genes. Researchers found that weathering processes like sunlight exposure increase the surface area of microplastics and generate reactive oxygen species, both of which can enhance the uptake and transfer of resistance genes among bacteria. The findings suggest that aged microplastics in the environment may be more effective at spreading antibiotic resistance than fresh ones.
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Researchers found that both petroleum-based and biodegradable microplastics significantly increase the horizontal transfer of antibiotic resistance genes between bacteria, and UV aging amplified this effect by 4 to 20 times. The aged particles disrupted bacterial cell membranes, increased oxidative stress, and boosted bacterial energy metabolism, all of which facilitated gene transfer. The study also showed that UV-aged microplastics promoted antibiotic resistance spread in gut bacteria in living organisms, raising concerns about environmental plastic degradation and public health.
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