Papers

61,005 results
|
Article Tier 2

Antimicrobial and the Resistances in the Environment: Ecological and Health Risks, Influencing Factors, and Mitigation Strategies

This review examines how antimicrobial contamination in the environment contributes to the growing problem of antimicrobial resistance. Researchers found that residual antimicrobials from medical and agricultural use continuously enter ecosystems, promoting the spread of resistant bacteria and resistance genes. The study highlights environmental factors that are often overlooked and discusses strategies for reducing antimicrobial pollution and limiting resistance spread.

2023 Toxics 58 citations
Review Tier 2

Proclivities for prevalence and treatment of antibiotics in the ambient water: a review

This review critically examines the prevalence of antibiotics in ambient water systems and the challenges of treating antibiotic-contaminated water. Researchers found that antibiotic resistance in water environments has emerged as a major public health concern, driven by pharmaceutical runoff and inadequate wastewater treatment. The study evaluates various treatment technologies and emphasizes the need for better monitoring and removal strategies to address this growing threat to water quality.

2020 npj Clean Water 161 citations
Review Tier 2

Occurrence of Antimicrobial Resistance in the Environment in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland: A Narrative Review of Existing Evidence

A narrative review synthesized evidence on antibiotic resistance in environmental settings across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, documenting that resistant bacteria and resistance genes are widespread in soil, water, and wastewater systems. The review identifies agricultural antibiotic use and wastewater discharge as the dominant pathways driving environmental antibiotic resistance in these three countries.

2022 Microorganisms 10 citations
Article Tier 2

The problem of contamination of aquatic ecosystems with antibiotics (a review)

This review examines the contamination of aquatic ecosystems by antibiotics, synthesizing global data on risks associated with antibiotic presence in ocean and freshwater environments, including effects on aquatic organisms and the promotion of antibiotic resistance. The authors assess quantitative and qualitative contamination using bivalves as bioindicators and evaluate the spread of resistance genes through aquatic biocenoses.

2023 Ribogospodarsʹka nauka Ukraïni 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Evolution and Emergence of Antibiotic Resistance in Given Ecosystems: Possible Strategies for Addressing the Challenge of Antibiotic Resistance

This review traces the history of antibiotic resistance and examines how it evolves and spreads across aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Researchers discuss the ecological roles of antibiotics and the modern tools used to identify resistant organisms in various environments. The study highlights the ecotoxicological impact of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and explores potential strategies, including environmental monitoring, to address this growing public health challenge.

2022 Antibiotics 54 citations
Article Tier 2

A Review of the Distribution of Antibiotics in Water in Different Regions of China and Current Antibiotic Degradation Pathways

This review summarized the spatial and temporal distribution of antibiotic contamination across major Chinese water bodies, identifying livestock farming, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and aquaculture as primary sources and reviewing current biological and physicochemical degradation pathways.

2021 Frontiers in Environmental Science 161 citations
Article Tier 2

On the Generation, Impact and Removal of Antibiotic Resistance in the Water Environment

This review explains how antibiotic resistance develops and spreads through water environments — including rivers, groundwater, and wastewater. The findings are relevant to microplastics because plastic particles in water are known to accumulate antibiotic-resistant bacteria, potentially accelerating the spread of drug resistance through aquatic systems.

2023 BIO Web of Conferences 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence, fate, and risk assessment of antibiotics in typical pharmaceutical manufactories and receiving water bodies from different regions

Researchers surveyed four pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities in China and found thirteen different antibiotics in their wastewater and nearby receiving water bodies at concentrations up to 727 nanograms per liter. Fluoroquinolones and macrolides were the most prevalent classes, and while wastewater treatment removed some antibiotics, significant residues persisted in the environment. The study highlights pharmaceutical manufacturing as an important source of antibiotic pollution in waterways.

2023 PLoS ONE 52 citations
Article Tier 2

Potential of waterbodies as a reservoir ofEscherichia colipathogens and the spread of antibiotic resistance in the Indonesian aquatic environment

This review analyzes the factors driving the spread of pathogenic Escherichia coli and antibiotic-resistant bacteria in Indonesian aquatic environments, including antibiotic misuse, inadequate waste treatment, and poor industrial waste management. Indonesian rivers serve as vectors for both pathogenic E. coli and antimicrobial resistance genes, posing significant public health risks.

2023 Journal of Water Sanitation and Hygiene for Development 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Interplay Between Antimicrobial Resistance and Global Environmental Change

This review explores how global environmental changes, including pollution, climate change, and habitat destruction, are accelerating the spread of antimicrobial resistance. Researchers found that factors like microplastic pollution, heavy metals, and pharmaceutical waste create conditions that promote the evolution of resistant bacteria. The study suggests that addressing antimicrobial resistance requires considering it as an environmental problem, not just a medical one.

2023 Annual Review of Genetics 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Strategy to Combat Antibiotic Resistance Bacteria and Genes in Wastewater in Developing Countries

This review highlights strategies to reduce antibiotic-resistant bacteria and genes in wastewater in developing countries, emphasizing the need for improved treatment infrastructure, reduced antibiotic releases into the environment, and ongoing monitoring to protect public health.

2023 Preprints.org 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Dissemination Of Antibiotic Resistance Via Wastewater And Surface Water

This review examined how antibiotic-resistant bacteria spread through wastewater and surface water, noting that microplastics in wastewater can carry resistant bacteria into the environment. Antibiotic resistance is a growing public health crisis, and plastic pollution is one pathway accelerating its spread in waterways.

2021 Research Repository (Delft University of Technology)
Review Tier 2

Occurrence, Bioaccumulation, Metabolism and Ecotoxicity of Fluoroquinolones in the Aquatic Environment: A Review

This review examines fluoroquinolone antibiotic contamination in waterways across 32 countries, finding widespread pollution especially in developing nations. These antibiotics accumulate in aquatic organisms and move through the food chain, with toxicity varying by species and environmental conditions. The co-occurrence of antibiotics and microplastics in water is a growing concern, as microplastics can absorb and transport these drugs, potentially increasing human exposure.

2023 Toxics 61 citations
Article Tier 2

Accumulation of antibiotics in the environment: Have appropriate measures been taken to protect Canadian human and ecological health?

This review examines how antibiotics and other contaminants of emerging concern, including microplastics, are legally discharged into Canadian freshwater from treatment plants and accumulate in the environment. The buildup of these substances raises concerns about antibiotic resistance and ecosystem disruption, with potential downstream effects on human health through contaminated drinking water and food sources.

2024 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Risk of antimicrobial resistance spreading via food loss and waste.

This review found that food loss and waste can serve as a reservoir for antimicrobial resistance genes and antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and that improper disposal — particularly in landfills contaminated with microplastics and heavy metals — accelerates the environmental spread of antimicrobial resistance.

2026 Infectious diseases of poverty
Article Tier 2

Knowledge gaps in the assessment of antimicrobial resistance in surface waters

This review identifies knowledge gaps in assessing antimicrobial resistance in surface waters, highlighting uncertainties about the selection pressure from antibiotics and heavy metals and the impact on aquatic organisms and human health.

2021 FEMS Microbiology Ecology 46 citations
Article Tier 2

Household Wastewater as a Sentinel for Community-Level Antimicrobial Resistance: A Cross-Sectional Study in Gombe, Nigeria

Researchers investigated household wastewater as a sentinel for community-level antimicrobial resistance (AMR), finding that wastewater analysis could capture population-wide resistance profiles in a cost-effective way. The study identified environmental transmission via wastewater as a significant but understudied route for AMR dissemination.

2025
Article Tier 2

Occurrence of Antibiotic Resistance in Lotic Ecosystems

This review examines the occurrence and spread of antibiotic resistance genes and antibiotic-resistant bacteria in lotic (flowing water) ecosystems, analyzing how rivers and streams serve as reservoirs and conduits for the environmental dissemination of antibiotic resistance. Researchers synthesized evidence showing that agricultural runoff, wastewater discharge, and hospital effluents are major contributors to resistance gene loads in freshwater systems.

2022 THE SCIENTIFIC TEMPER 1 citations
Article Tier 2

The Current Status and Prevention of Antibiotic Pollution in Groundwater in China

This review systematically described antibiotic sources, migration, transformation, contamination levels, and ecological risks in Chinese groundwater, finding that antibiotic pollution is widespread and poses growing risks to drinking water quality and aquatic ecosystems. The authors identified gaps in monitoring and called for stronger regulatory controls on antibiotic discharge to groundwater.

2022 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 60 citations
Article Tier 2

Antibiotic and Non-Antibiotic Determinants of Antimicrobial Resistance: Insights from Water Ecosystems

This review explains how non-antibiotic pollutants like heavy metals, biocides, and microplastics are contributing to antibiotic resistance in water systems, beyond the well-known problem of antibiotic overuse. Wastewater treatment plants are hotspots where these pollutants interact with bacteria, promoting the spread of resistance genes through mobile genetic elements. The findings are concerning for human health because drug-resistant bacteria from water environments can ultimately reach people through drinking water and food.

2024 ACS ES&T Water 10 citations
Article Tier 2

The Complex Interplay Between Antibiotic Resistance and Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products in the Environment

This review explores the complex relationship between antibiotic-resistant bacteria, antibiotic resistance genes, and environmental contaminants including pharmaceuticals and personal care products. Researchers found that antibiotic resistance is often elevated in human-impacted environments, particularly where faecal waste and chemical contaminant mixtures are present. The study highlights how environmental pollution, including microplastic contamination, may contribute to the spread of antibiotic resistance through horizontal gene transfer and bacterial adaptation.

2022 Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 44 citations
Article Tier 2

A Review of the Dissemination of Antibiotic Resistance through Wastewater Treatment Plants: Current Situation in Sri Lanka and Future Perspectives

This review examines how wastewater treatment plants contribute to the spread of antibiotic resistance in the environment, with a focus on the situation in Sri Lanka. Researchers found that conventional treatment processes often fail to fully eliminate antibiotic-resistant bacteria and resistance genes from effluent. The study calls for upgraded treatment technologies and better monitoring to address this growing public health concern.

2024 Life 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Factors promoting and limiting antimicrobial resistance in the environment – Existing knowledge gaps

This review highlights overlooked factors in antimicrobial resistance dissemination, emphasizing knowledge gaps that must be addressed to create a comprehensive understanding of resistance spread within the One Health framework.

2022 Frontiers in Microbiology 35 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

A systematic review of sources, occurrence, behavior and risks of global marine antibiotics

This systematic review of global marine antibiotic contamination found that sulfamethoxazole is the most frequently detected antibiotic in seawater, sediment, and marine organisms, with the highest concentrations along coastal China. Coexisting contaminants like microplastics may enhance antibiotic impacts and drive antibiotic resistance gene development in marine environments.

2025 npj Emerging Contaminants 5 citations