Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Microbiotic particles in water and soil, water-soil microbiota coalescences, and antimicrobial resistance

This paper explores how bacteria attach to tiny particles in water and soil, forming communities that may carry antimicrobial resistance genes. Microplastics, sediment grains, and other particles act as surfaces where antibiotic-resistant bacteria can accumulate and spread. Understanding these 'microbiotic particles' is important for tracking how antibiotic resistance moves through the environment.

2021
Article Tier 2

Biofilms: hot spots of horizontal gene transfer (HGT) in aquatic environments, with a focus on a new HGT mechanism

This review covers horizontal gene transfer in aquatic biofilms, with emphasis on antibiotic resistance gene spread, and introduces membrane vesicles as a newly recognized HGT mechanism by which bacteria share genetic material, with implications for understanding resistance spread on microplastic surfaces.

2020 FEMS Microbiology Ecology 396 citations
Article Tier 2

How microplastics and nanoplastics shape antibiotic resistance?

This review examines how micro- and nanoplastics act as vectors for antibiotic resistance genes, facilitating their spread through environmental and biological systems by creating selective pressure and hosting microbial communities that exchange resistance determinants.

2022 Water Emerging Contaminants & Nanoplastics 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics as a novel facilitator for antimicrobial resistance: Effects of concentration, composition, and size on Escherichia coli multidrug resistance

This study examined how microplastics facilitate antimicrobial resistance by acting as a surface for the co-selection of resistant bacteria, finding that plastic surfaces enrich resistance genes and transfer-capable elements in aquatic environments.

2024
Article Tier 2

Unraveling the effect of micro/nanoplastics on the occurrence and horizontal transfer of environmental antibiotic resistance genes: Advances, mechanisms and future prospects

This review examines how micro- and nanoplastics promote the spread of antibiotic resistance genes in the environment. The tiny plastic particles create conditions that help bacteria exchange resistance genes more easily by generating oxidative stress, making cell membranes more permeable, and providing surfaces where resistant bacteria can form communities. This is a growing public health concern because antibiotic-resistant infections are increasingly difficult to treat.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 20 citations
Article Tier 2

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.

2023 Antibiotics 443 citations
Article Tier 2

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.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Antibiotic resistant bacteria colonising microplastics in the aquatic environment: An emerging challenge

Researchers reviewed how microplastics in aquatic environments act as surfaces where antibiotic-resistant bacteria can grow and swap resistance genes with each other, raising concern that contaminated seafood and water could transfer these hard-to-treat bacteria to humans.

2024 Discover Sustainability 15 citations
Article Tier 2

Are microplastic particles a hotspot for the spread and the persistence of antibiotic resistance in aquatic systems?

This review explores whether microplastic particles in water could serve as hotspots for antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Researchers found that microplastics host a unique microbial biofilm called the "plastisphere" that differs from surrounding water communities and may promote the survival and spread of resistant organisms. The study suggests that microplastics could act as carriers of antibiotic resistance genes, posing a potential threat to both environmental and human health.

2021 Environmental Pollution 102 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in fresh- and wastewater are potential contributors to antibiotic resistance - A minireview

Researchers reviewed the link between microplastic pollution and the spread of antibiotic resistance in freshwater environments, finding that microplastic surfaces host unique bacterial communities enriched in antibiotic-resistant bacteria and the resistance genes they can share with other microbes. The close packing of bacteria in these plastic-surface biofilms may accelerate the spread of drug-resistant pathogens through drinking water sources, though the full health implications remain poorly understood.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials Advances 31 citations
Article Tier 2

A review focusing on mechanisms and ecological risks of enrichment and propagation of antibiotic resistance genes and mobile genetic elements by microplastic biofilms

This review examines how microplastics in water serve as surfaces for bacterial biofilms that harbor antibiotic resistance genes. The biofilms that form on microplastic surfaces can spread resistance genes to other bacteria and potentially to organisms that ingest them, including fish and ultimately humans. The authors highlight that microplastic-associated antibiotic resistance is an underappreciated public health risk that needs more research.

2024 Environmental Research 24 citations
Article Tier 2

New insight into the effect of microplastics on antibiotic resistance and bacterial community of biofilm

Researchers found that different types of microplastics promote distinct biofilm communities and enhance antibiotic resistance gene proliferation compared to natural substrates, suggesting microplastics serve as unique platforms for the spread of antimicrobial resistance.

2023 Chemosphere 30 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of Protists on Horizontal Transfer of Antimicrobial Resistance Genes in Water Environment

This review examined how protists in aquatic environments facilitate horizontal transfer of antibiotic resistance genes among bacteria, revealing novel mechanisms beyond classical conjugation, transformation, and transduction that contribute to antimicrobial resistance spread.

2023 Journal of Water and Environment Technology 8 citations
Article Tier 2

The interplay between antimicrobial resistance, heavy metal pollution, and the role of microplastics

This review explores the three-way connection between microplastics, heavy metals, and antibiotic resistance in the environment. Microplastics serve as surfaces where bacteria form biofilms and exchange resistance genes, while heavy metals have been driving bacterial resistance for billions of years through similar genetic mechanisms. Together, these pollutants create hotspots where dangerous antibiotic-resistant bacteria can develop and spread.

2025 Frontiers in Microbiology 39 citations
Article Tier 2

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.

2026 Environmental Science & Technology
Article Tier 2

Microplastics as emerging reservoirs of antimicrobial resistance: Clinical relevance and environmental mechanisms

This review examines how microplastics act as environmental reservoirs for antibiotic resistance genes, creating selective microenvironments through antibiotic and metal adsorption, biofilm formation, and horizontal gene transfer, with potential pathways to clinical human exposure.

2025 Journal of Clinical and Experimental Investigations
Article Tier 2

The nexus of microplastics, food and antimicrobial resistance in the context of aquatic environment: Interdisciplinary linkages of pathways

This review examines how microplastics in aquatic environments serve as surfaces where bacteria can grow, share antibiotic resistance genes, and then enter the food chain through contaminated seafood. The combination of microplastic pollution and antimicrobial resistance creates a compounding threat, as resistant bacteria riding on plastic particles can survive water treatment and reach humans. The authors call for interdisciplinary research connecting environmental science and public health to address this growing risk.

2025 Journal of Contaminant Hydrology 7 citations
Article Tier 2

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.

2021 Water Research 140 citations
Article Tier 2

Interaction of Microbes with Microplastics and Nanoplastics in the Agroecosystems—Impact on Antimicrobial Resistance

This review examines how microplastics and nanoplastics in agricultural soil serve as hotspots for spreading antibiotic resistance genes between bacteria. The plastic particles provide surfaces where bacteria exchange genetic material, potentially accelerating the spread of drug-resistant microbes. This is a public health concern because resistant bacteria from farm soil can enter the food chain and make infections harder to treat.

2023 Pathogens 55 citations
Article Tier 2

A review on the effect of micro- and nano-plastics pollution on the emergence of antimicrobial resistance

This review highlights how microplastics serve as breeding grounds for antimicrobial resistance genes, examining the overlooked interaction between plastic pollution and antibiotic resistance that poses combined threats to environmental and human health.

2022 Chemosphere 34 citations