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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Microplastic biofilms promote the horizontal transfer of antibiotic resistance genes in estuarine environments
Clear[Research progress on the effect of estuary microplastics on antibiotic resistance genes].
This review summarizes research on how microplastics in estuarine environments influence the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), focusing on the role of biofilms that form on plastic surfaces. Microplastic biofilms selectively enrich ARG-carrying bacteria and facilitate horizontal gene transfer, increasing the risk of antibiotic resistance dissemination in ecologically and humanly important estuarine zones.
Prevalence of microplastics, antibiotic resistant genes and microplastic associated biofilms in estuary - A review
This review examined evidence for microplastics, antibiotic resistance genes, and microplastic-associated biofilms in estuarine ecosystems. Microplastics in estuaries serve as substrates for diverse microbial biofilms including pathogens and antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and estuaries are identified as important reservoirs for microplastic-facilitated horizontal gene transfer.
Antagonistic effects of microplastic biofilms on antibiotic resistance gene horizontal transfer in water environments
Microplastics in water environments accumulate bacteria on their surfaces, forming biofilms that were long assumed to accelerate the spread of antibiotic resistance genes between microbes. This study challenges that assumption by showing that microplastic biofilms can actually reduce the rate of antibiotic resistance gene transfer compared to free-floating bacteria — dampening both the promoting effect of certain chemicals and the inhibiting effect of others. The finding adds important nuance to the debate about microplastics as vectors for antibiotic resistance, suggesting the relationship is more complex than a simple amplifier.
Microplastic pollution increases gene exchange in aquatic ecosystems
Researchers found that microplastics in aquatic environments serve as surfaces where bacteria form biofilms and exchange genes at higher rates than free-living bacteria. The study demonstrated increased transfer of antibiotic resistance genes among a wide range of bacterial species growing on microplastic particles. The findings suggest that microplastic pollution could accelerate the spread of antibiotic resistance in waterways, posing a potential hazard to both ecosystems and human health.
Conjugative antibiotic-resistant plasmids promote bacterial colonization of microplastics in water environments
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria carrying conjugative plasmids were shown to more effectively colonize microplastic surfaces in water environments, with plasmid transfer rates on plastic surfaces exceeding those in the surrounding water. The study identifies microplastics as hotspots for the spread of antibiotic resistance genes through horizontal gene transfer in aquatic systems.
Enhanced propagation of intracellular and extracellular antibiotic resistance genes in municipal wastewater by microplastics
Researchers investigated how microplastics in municipal wastewater can carry and promote the spread of antibiotic resistance genes, including those found both inside and outside bacterial cells. They found that microplastics adsorbed both types of resistance genes and enhanced their transfer between bacteria through horizontal gene transfer. The study reveals that microplastics in wastewater systems may act as an underappreciated accelerator of antibiotic resistance spread.
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.
Microplastic-Mediated Dissemination of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Marine Environments: Mechanisms, Environmental Modulators, and Emerging Risks
This review examines how microplastics serve as vectors for spreading antibiotic resistance genes in marine environments through biofilm formation and horizontal gene transfer. Researchers found that plastic surfaces promote colonization by resistant bacteria, and environmental factors like salinity, UV exposure, and co-occurring heavy metals further accelerate the spread of resistance genes, posing significant ecological and public health risks.
Regulation of ARGs abundance by biofilm colonization on microplastics under selective pressure of antibiotics in river water environment
Researchers investigated how biofilms forming on microplastics in river water affect the spread of antibiotic resistance genes under antibiotic pressure. They found that the presence of antibiotics accelerated biofilm colonization on microplastic surfaces and significantly increased the abundance of resistance genes compared to conditions without antibiotics. The study suggests that microplastics in waterways may serve as hotspots for the development and transfer of antibiotic resistance.
From Interface to Cell: The Complex Interaction and Transfer Process Coupling Mechanism between Microplastics and Antibiotic Resistance Genes
Researchers examined how microplastic surfaces act as vectors for spreading antibiotic resistance genes in wastewater treatment systems. The study found that aged microplastics of PET, PE, and PP promoted bacterial adhesion, enhanced horizontal gene transfer, and triggered overproduction of reactive oxygen species, ultimately amplifying the spread of antimicrobial resistance through multiple molecular mechanisms.
Horizontal Gene Transfer of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Biofilms
This review explains how bacteria living in biofilms -- sticky communities attached to surfaces -- can rapidly share antibiotic resistance genes with each other through horizontal gene transfer, spreading resistance faster than free-floating bacteria. This is relevant to microplastic pollution because microplastics provide ideal surfaces for biofilm formation, potentially acting as hotspots for the spread of antibiotic resistance in the environment.
Selective enrichment of bacterial pathogens by microplastic biofilm
Researchers incubated biofilms on microplastics and natural substrates in freshwater and found that microplastic surfaces selectively enriched bacterial pathogens and antibiotic resistance genes compared to rock and leaf surfaces. The study suggests that microplastics in waterways may serve as hotspots for harmful bacteria and contribute to the spread of antibiotic resistance in the environment.
Microplastics enhance the prevalence of antibiotic resistance genes in mariculture sediments by enriching host bacteria and promoting horizontal gene transfer
Researchers found that polystyrene and PVC microplastics in marine sediments increased the abundance of antibiotic resistance genes by 1.4 to 2.8 times compared to sediment without plastics. PVC was particularly harmful because its chemical additives, including heavy metals and bisphenol A, promoted bacteria to share resistance genes more readily. These findings show that microplastic pollution in oceans is directly contributing to the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, a major public health concern.
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.
Microplastic-Mediated Transfer of Tetracycline Resistance: Unveiling the Role of Mussels in Marine Ecosystems
Researchers found that microplastics can serve as platforms for antibiotic-resistant bacteria to form biofilms in marine environments, facilitating the transfer of resistance genes. In experiments with mussels, polyethylene microplastics significantly increased the rate at which tetracycline resistance genes spread between bacteria. The findings raise concerns that microplastic pollution in the ocean could accelerate the spread of antibiotic resistance, with implications for both ecosystem and public health.
[Influencing Factors and Mechanisms of Antibiotic Resistance Gene Enrichment by Microplastics in the Environment].
This review examines how microplastics in the environment serve as carriers for antibiotic resistance genes, enriching and spreading resistant bacteria across air, soil, water, and sediments. Researchers found that the type, surface characteristics, and aging of microplastics all influence how effectively they accumulate resistance genes and facilitate horizontal gene transfer. The findings highlight the need to consider microplastics as an important vector in the environmental spread of antibiotic resistance.
Microplastic biofilm as hotspots of antibiotic resistance genes and potential pathogens
This review examined how microplastic biofilms—the plastisphere—serve as hotspots for antibiotic resistance gene (ARG) accumulation and potential pathogen enrichment. The authors described mechanisms by which microplastic surfaces promote horizontal gene transfer and bacterial community shifts that favor ARG-carrying strains, raising concern that microplastics accelerate the spread of antibiotic resistance in aquatic environments.
Selectively enrichment of antibiotics and ARGs by microplastics in river, estuary and marine waters
Researchers investigated how microplastics interact with antibiotics and antibiotic resistance genes across river, estuary, and marine environments of varying salinity. They found that microplastics can concentrate both antibiotics and antibiotic resistance genes from surrounding water, with this enrichment effect being strongest in freshwater and decreasing as salinity increases. The study raises concerns that microplastics may serve as vehicles for spreading antibiotic resistance in aquatic ecosystems.
Microplastics pollution in the ocean: Potential carrier of resistant bacteria and resistance genes
This review examined microplastics in marine environments as carriers of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and resistance genes, finding that plastic surfaces selectively enrich resistance genes through horizontal gene transfer and co-selection pressure, making ocean microplastics a vector for resistance dissemination across ecosystems.
Microbubble-microplastic interactions in batch air flotation
Researchers explored the role of microplastics as carriers of antibiotic resistance genes in aquatic environments, finding that plastic surfaces harbor higher densities of resistance genes than surrounding water. Biofilm formation on microplastics appears to facilitate horizontal gene transfer.
Microplastic biofilm: An important microniche that may accelerate the spread of antibiotic resistance genes via natural transformation
Researchers discovered that biofilms forming on microplastics can accelerate the spread of antibiotic resistance genes through a process called natural transformation. They found that transformation rates on microplastic surfaces were up to 1,000 times higher than on natural substrates. The study suggests that microplastic pollution may create hotspots where bacteria more readily pick up and share genes for antibiotic resistance.
Reshaping the antibiotic resistance genes in plastisphere upon deposition in sediment-water interface: Dynamic evolution and propagation mechanism
Researchers examined how antibiotic resistance genes in the microplastic biofilm (plastisphere) evolve as MPs settle from water to sediment, finding that deposition in sediment reshapes ARG profiles and promotes horizontal gene transfer, amplifying resistance gene reservoirs in benthic environments.
Exploring the dynamics of antibiotic resistome on plastic debris traveling from the river to the sea along a representative estuary based on field sequential transfer incubations
Researchers tracked how antibiotic resistance genes change on plastic debris as it travels from a river through an estuary into the sea. They found that over 80 percent of resistance genes persisted on the plastic throughout the journey, and some genes found on the plastic were absent from the surrounding seawater. The study suggests that floating plastic waste could act as a vehicle for spreading antibiotic resistance from inland waterways into marine environments.
Microplastics and Their Role in the Maintenance and Spread of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Marine Ecosystems
This review examines the role of microplastics in maintaining and spreading antibiotic resistance genes in marine ecosystems, synthesizing evidence that plastic pollution in aquatic environments creates reservoirs for antimicrobial resistant bacteria and facilitates horizontal gene transfer.