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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Microplastics May Not Proliferate Antibiotic Resistance during Mainstream Anaerobic Treatment
ClearEffects of polypropylene microplastics on digestion performance, microbial community, and antibiotic resistance during microbial anaerobic digestion
Researchers studied how polypropylene microplastics affect the anaerobic digestion process used to treat wastewater sludge. While small amounts of microplastics slightly increased methane production, they also promoted the spread of antibiotic resistance genes among bacteria in the digesters. This means microplastics in wastewater systems could contribute to the growing problem of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which poses a serious threat to human health.
Metagenomic Analysis Reveals the Effects of Microplastics on Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Sludge Anaerobic Digestion
Researchers used metagenomic analysis to study how microplastics in sewage sludge affect the spread of antibiotic resistance genes during anaerobic digestion. They found that microplastics increased antibiotic resistance gene levels by up to 30 percent, with polyethylene having the strongest effect, and also boosted the mobile genetic elements that help resistance genes spread between bacteria. The findings raise concerns about microplastics facilitating the spread of antibiotic resistance through wastewater treatment systems.
Impacts of microplastic type on the fate of antibiotic resistance genes and horizontal gene transfer mechanism during anaerobic digestion
Researchers examined how three types of microplastics affect antibiotic resistance genes during the anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge. They found that while microplastics actually increased methane production, they also decreased the overall abundance of antibiotic resistance genes but changed how those genes spread between bacteria. The study reveals a complex interaction where microplastics may reduce some resistance genes while promoting the horizontal transfer of others during waste treatment.
Microplastics exhibit accumulation and horizontal transfer of antibiotic resistance genes
Researchers investigated whether microplastics in wastewater treatment plants can accumulate and spread antibiotic resistance genes. They found that bacteria growing on microplastic surfaces in treatment tanks harbored antibiotic resistance genes and transferred them at higher rates than bacteria in the surrounding water. This suggests microplastics in wastewater systems may serve as hotspots for spreading antibiotic resistance, posing potential risks to both ecosystems and human health.
Size-dependent effects of microplastics on antibiotic resistance genes fate in wastewater treatment systems: The role of changed surface property and microbial assemblages in a continuous exposure mode
Researchers developed a continuous exposure method to evaluate how different sizes of microplastics affect antibiotic resistance gene fate in wastewater treatment, finding that smaller microplastics had greater impacts on microbial communities and resistance gene proliferation.
Contribution of microplastic particles to the spread of resistances and pathogenic bacteria in treated wastewaters
Researchers studied microplastic particles collected from treated wastewater effluents and found that MPs harbored significantly higher loads of antibiotic resistance genes and pathogenic bacteria compared to surrounding water, suggesting MPs facilitate their environmental spread.
Microplastics Enhance the Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Anaerobic Sludge Digestion by Enriching Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria in Surface Biofilm and Facilitating the Vertical and Horizontal Gene Transfer
This study found that microplastics in sewage sludge promote the spread of antibiotic resistance genes, which make bacteria harder to treat with antibiotics. Microplastics provided a surface for resistant bacteria to grow and helped them share resistance genes with other bacteria. The more microplastics present, the more antibiotic resistance spread, raising concerns about how plastic pollution in wastewater could contribute to the growing antibiotic resistance crisis.
From wastewater to sludge: The role of microplastics in shaping anaerobic digestion performance and antibiotic resistance gene dynamics
This review examines how microplastics in wastewater treatment plants affect the anaerobic digestion process used to break down sewage sludge, finding that certain plastic types can either boost or reduce biogas production depending on conditions. Importantly, microplastics increased the abundance of antibiotic resistance genes by up to 514%, raising serious concerns that wastewater treatment -- meant to protect public health -- may instead become a breeding ground for antibiotic-resistant bacteria when microplastics are present.
The Role of Wastewater Treatment Plants in Dissemination of Antibiotic Resistance: Source, Measurement, Removal and Risk Assessment
This review examines how wastewater treatment plants handle antibiotic-resistant bacteria and their resistance genes, finding that current treatment processes do not fully remove them. Different levels of treatment show varying removal rates, and resistant bacteria can still be found in treated water released into the environment. While not directly about microplastics, the findings are relevant because microplastics in wastewater can carry antibiotic-resistant bacteria into waterways.
Microplastics shape microbial interactions and affect the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes in different full-scale wastewater treatment plants
A study of three full-scale wastewater treatment plants found that microplastics were associated with increased spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), with microplastic surfaces appearing to facilitate microbial interactions that promote ARG transfer. This is a significant public health concern because wastewater plants that fail to fully remove microplastics may also be inadvertently accelerating the dissemination of antibiotic resistance into receiving waterways.
Do Microplastics Affect Biological Wastewater Treatment Performance? Implications from Bacterial Activity Experiments
Researchers tested the effects of polyester, polyethylene, and polyvinylchloride microplastics at concentrations of 50-10,000 particles/L on the activities of key wastewater treatment bacteria, finding no statistically significant differences in the activity of ammonium-oxidising bacteria, nitrite-oxidising bacteria, denitrifiers, or polyphosphate-accumulating organisms. The study concludes that microplastics at tested concentrations do not meaningfully impair biological wastewater treatment performance.
Polyethylene terephthalate microplastic fibers increase the release of extracellular antibiotic resistance genes during sewage sludge anaerobic digestion
Researchers found that polyethylene terephthalate microplastic fibers increased the release of antibiotic resistance genes during sewage sludge treatment. The microplastic fibers appeared to enhance the active secretion of these genes by bacteria, potentially increasing the spread of antibiotic resistance. This finding raises concerns about microplastics in wastewater acting as an overlooked factor in the growing global challenge of antibiotic resistance.
Entry pathways determined the effects of MPs on sludge anaerobic digestion system: The views of methane production and antibiotic resistance genes fates
Researchers examined how the entry pathway of microplastics into sludge affects anaerobic digestion performance and the fate of antibiotic resistance genes. They compared wastewater-derived microplastics with those entering through anaerobic digestion processes and found that the entry pathway significantly influenced both methane production and the spread of antibiotic resistance genes. The findings suggest that the source and history of microplastics in sewage sludge matter for downstream treatment outcomes.
The impact of various microplastics on bacterial community and antimicrobial resistance genes in Norwegian and South African wastewater
Researchers investigated how various microplastic types affect bacterial community composition and antimicrobial resistance gene prevalence in wastewater treatment plants in Norway and South Africa, examining whether plastic debris promotes antimicrobial resistance dissemination.
Deciphering the role of polyethylene microplastics on antibiotic resistance genes and mobile genetic elements fate in sludge thermophilic anaerobic digestion process
Researchers investigated how polyethylene microplastics affect antibiotic resistance genes and mobile genetic elements during sewage sludge thermophilic anaerobic digestion. The study found that microplastic contamination increased the abundance of antibiotic resistance genes and showed a strong positive correlation between microplastic concentration and mobile genetic element content, suggesting microplastics may promote the spread of antibiotic resistance.
Fragmented Microplastics Synergize with Biological Treatment To Potentiate Antibiotic Resistance Dissemination during Sewage Treatment
Researchers used metagenomic sequencing and high-throughput qPCR across a full sewage treatment chain to show that fragmented microplastics preferentially concentrate clinically relevant antibiotic resistance genes, with MP-bound genes contributing up to 43% of intracellular resistance genes detected in treated effluent, and Acinetobacter emerging as a key resistance indicator.
Microplastics as hubs enriching antibiotic-resistant bacteria and pathogens in municipal activated sludge
Researchers demonstrated that microplastics in municipal wastewater treatment plants act as "hubs," selectively concentrating antibiotic-resistant bacteria and pathogens in their surface biofilms, with antibiotic-resistance genes enriched up to 4.5-fold compared to sand particles — raising concerns about microplastics spreading drug-resistant microbes into the environment.
Microplastics accelerate nitrification, shape the microbial community, and alter antibiotic resistance during the nitrifying process
Researchers found that adding microplastics to wastewater treatment systems actually sped up nitrification (a key step in processing sewage) but also promoted the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Even biodegradable PLA plastics, often considered more environmentally friendly, significantly increased antibiotic resistance genes. This study warns that microplastics in wastewater systems could be accelerating the spread of antibiotic resistance, a major public health threat.
Microplastics can selectively enrich intracellular and extracellular antibiotic resistant genes and shape different microbial communities in aquatic systems
Researchers examined how microplastics of different types selectively capture antibiotic resistance genes and shape microbial communities in aquatic systems. They found that microplastics enriched both intracellular and extracellular antibiotic resistance genes, with the enrichment patterns varying by plastic type. The study suggests that microplastics may serve as hotspots for the spread of antimicrobial resistance in wastewater and natural water environments.
Different microplastics distinctively enriched the antibiotic resistance genes in anaerobic sludge digestion through shifting specific hosts and promoting horizontal gene flow
Researchers examined how polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride microplastics affect antibiotic resistance genes during sewage sludge digestion and found that both plastic types promoted the spread of resistance genes, but through different mechanisms. Polyethylene surfaces attracted specific bacteria that carry resistance genes, while PVC promoted horizontal gene transfer between organisms. The study raises concerns about wastewater treatment plants becoming hotspots for antibiotic resistance when microplastics are present.
The stress response of tetracycline resistance genes and bacterial communities under the existence of microplastics in typical leachate biological treatment system
Researchers studied how polystyrene and polyethylene microplastics affect tetracycline resistance genes and bacterial communities in a leachate biological treatment system. They found that microplastics served as hotspots for antibiotic resistance genes, with biofilms on the plastic surfaces harboring significantly higher gene abundances than the surrounding liquid. The study suggests that microplastics in waste treatment systems may accelerate the spread of antibiotic resistance.
Alteration of the migration trajectory of antibiotic resistance genes by microplastics in a leachate activated sludge system
This study found that microplastics in wastewater treatment systems actively promote the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) by acting as a surface for resistant bacteria to colonise and as a vehicle that carries those genes from sludge into the liquid effluent. Adding microplastics to a leachate treatment system increased tetracycline resistance gene abundance and made them harder to eliminate. This matters because wastewater treatment plants are a critical barrier against antibiotic resistance spreading into the environment and ultimately into human communities.
Underestimated Risks of Microplastics on the Environmental Spread of Antibiotic Resistance Genes
Researchers highlight how microplastics in aquatic environments can accelerate the spread of antibiotic resistance genes, a risk that current assessment methods may significantly underestimate. Biofilms that form on microplastic surfaces create conditions where bacteria are in close contact, facilitating the transfer of resistance genes between species. The study argues that standard microplastic detection methods miss many small particles, meaning the true scope of this resistance-spreading pathway is likely much larger than reported.
Diversity of antibiotic resistance gene variants at subsequent stages of the wastewater treatment process revealed by a metagenomic analysis of PCR amplicons
Not relevant to microplastics — this study uses next-generation sequencing to catalog antibiotic resistance gene variants at different stages of a wastewater treatment plant, finding that some variants change in abundance through the process while novel variants are present throughout.