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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to The Travelling Particles: Investigating microplastics as possible transport vectors for multidrug resistant E. coli in the Weser estuary (Germany)
ClearInvestigating microplastic occurrences in coastal surface seawaters and their potential role as transport vectors for multidrug-resistant E. coli
Researchers investigated microplastic occurrences in coastal surface seawaters and examined whether microplastics serve as transport vectors for multidrug-resistant E. coli, addressing a gap in comparable long-term data on microplastic contamination in aquatic systems. The thesis found that microplastics in coastal environments can carry antibiotic-resistant bacteria, raising concerns about their role in spreading antimicrobial resistance.
Microplastics accumulate priority antibiotic-resistant pathogens: Evidence from the riverine plastisphere
Researchers placed microplastics in river water and found they accumulated more antibiotic-resistant bacteria than natural sand particles, including dangerous pathogens like E. coli and Klebsiella. Most of the bacteria isolated from the plastic surfaces were multi-drug resistant and carried virulence traits like biofilm formation. This suggests microplastics in waterways may act as rafts for spreading antibiotic resistance through the environment.
Sewers to Seas: exploring pathogens and antimicrobial resistance on microplastics from hospital wastewater to marine environments
Researchers tracked microplastics from hospital wastewater through sewers to coastal seas to determine whether the plastisphere on these particles uniquely enriches antimicrobial-resistant and pathogenic bacteria beyond what is found on other environmental substrates.
Exploiting microplastics and the plastisphere for the surveillance of human pathogenic bacteria discharged into surface waters in wastewater effluent
Researchers placed small plastic particles in rivers upstream and downstream of a wastewater treatment plant and found that disease-causing bacteria, including E. coli and Klebsiella, quickly formed biofilms on them within 24 hours. These biofilms carried antibiotic resistance genes and virulence factors, showing that microplastics in waterways can serve as floating platforms for dangerous bacteria that pose risks to human health.
From wastewater discharge to the beach: Survival of human pathogens bound to microplastics during transfer through the freshwater-marine continuum
Researchers investigated how human pathogens survive on microplastic surfaces as they travel from wastewater treatment plants through freshwater into marine environments. They found that the biofilm environment on plastic surfaces helped bacteria like E. coli and Enterococcus faecalis persist longer during transitions between water types compared to bacteria in the surrounding water. The study suggests that microplastics may facilitate the environmental spread of pathogens by providing a protective habitat during transport.
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.
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.
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.
Dangerous hitchhikers? Evidence for potentially pathogenic Vibrio spp. on microplastic particles
Researchers tested whether marine microplastics carry potentially pathogenic Vibrio bacteria, finding Vibrio species on microplastic surfaces in seawater, raising concerns about plastics as vehicles for transporting harmful bacteria in marine environments.
Survival of human pathogens bound to microplastics during transfer through the freshwater-marine continuum: from wastewater discharge to the beach
Researchers tracked survival of E. coli, E. faecalis, and P. aeruginosa colonizing polyethylene microplastics as particles were transferred through a series of mesocosms simulating downstream transport from wastewater effluent through freshwater, estuary, seawater, and beach sand. All three pathogens survived the full environmental transition sequence in the plastisphere, with higher bacterial concentrations on microplastics than on glass controls, though die-off rates did not differ by substrate, demonstrating microplastics' potential to extend pathogen persistence across environmental boundaries.
Assessment of Emerging Pathogens and Antibiotic Resistance Genes in the Biofilm of Microplastics Incubated Under a Wastewater Discharge Simulation
Researchers incubated common plastic types in flowing water that simulated wastewater discharge conditions for 10 weeks and studied the bacteria that colonized the plastic surfaces. They found that microplastics exposed to treated wastewater developed distinct bacterial communities compared to those in clean river water, including emerging pathogens and antibiotic resistance genes. The study suggests that microplastics in waterways receiving wastewater may serve as mobile platforms for spreading harmful bacteria and antibiotic resistance in the environment.
Hidden threats in the plastisphere: Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales colonizing microplastics in river water
Researchers placed microplastics in a river near a wastewater treatment plant and found that antibiotic-resistant bacteria, including dangerous carbapenem-resistant strains, colonized the plastic surfaces. These bacteria carried multiple drug-resistance genes and virulence traits, making them potential threats to human health. The study demonstrates that microplastics in waterways can serve as floating platforms that help spread antibiotic-resistant superbugs from wastewater into the broader environment.
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.
Microplastic biofilms promote the horizontal transfer of antibiotic resistance genes in estuarine environments
Researchers compared how effectively antibiotic resistance genes transfer between bacteria floating freely in water versus bacteria living in biofilms on microplastic surfaces. They found that microplastic biofilms significantly enhanced the transfer of resistance genes compared to free-floating bacteria, with factors like extracellular DNA and cell membrane permeability playing key roles. The study suggests that microplastics in estuaries may act as hotspots for spreading antibiotic resistance in the environment.
Detection of antimicrobial resistance in Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp. Originated from cultivated oysters and estuarine waters
This study detected antimicrobial-resistant bacteria in oysters and estuarine waters, raising concerns about how aquatic environments serve as reservoirs for antibiotic resistance that can reach humans through seafood consumption. The findings are relevant to microplastic research because microplastics are known to harbor and concentrate antibiotic resistance genes on their surfaces.
High-throughput metagenomic profiling of functional and resistome features in estuarine microplastic microbiomes
Scientists studied tiny plastic particles (microplastics) floating in coastal waters in India and found that harmful bacteria, including antibiotic-resistant germs, were growing on their surfaces. These plastic particles act like floating taxis that can carry dangerous microbes from place to place in the water. This matters because people who swim, fish, or eat seafood from these waters could be exposed to these harmful bacteria.
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.
Antibiotic resistance genes and virulence factors in the plastisphere in wastewater treatment plant effluent: Health risk quantification and driving mechanism interpretation
Researchers found that microplastics in treated wastewater carry significantly more disease-causing bacteria, antibiotic resistance genes, and virulence factors on their surfaces compared to the surrounding water. This means microplastics released from wastewater treatment plants into rivers and lakes could spread antibiotic-resistant infections, posing a direct risk to communities that rely on these water sources.
Emerging Issues on Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Colonizing Plastic Waste in Aquatic Ecosystems
Researchers found antibiotic-resistant bacteria colonizing plastic waste submerged in an inland water body, including species related to human pathogens like Klebsiella. All isolated bacteria showed high resistance to multiple antibiotics, and they carried numerous antibiotic resistance genes. This is concerning because plastic waste in waterways can serve as a platform for drug-resistant bacteria to multiply and potentially spread to humans through contaminated water.
Increasing microplastics pollution: An emerging vector for potentially pathogenic bacteria in the environment
Researchers collected microplastics from a river basin in Turkey and found that disease-causing bacteria, including Salmonella, E. coli, and Staphylococcus, readily form colonies on plastic particle surfaces. This means microplastics floating in water can act as tiny rafts carrying harmful bacteria, potentially increasing infection risks when contaminated water is used for drinking or recreation.
Size effects of microplastics on antibiotic resistome and core microbiome in an urban river
Scientists found that microplastics in an urban river serve as platforms for antibiotic-resistant bacteria and dangerous pathogens including Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and Legionella pneumophila. Larger microplastic particles harbored more antibiotic resistance genes, and the concentrations of these genes were much higher on plastic surfaces than in the surrounding water. This research raises concerns that microplastics in waterways could spread drug-resistant infections by providing a surface where dangerous bacteria thrive and share resistance genes.
Presence of microplastic particles increased abundance of pathogens and antimicrobial resistance genes in microbial communities from the Oder river water and sediment
Researchers incubated microplastic particles in water from the Oder River and found that bacteria growing on the plastic surfaces had significantly higher levels of disease-causing organisms and antibiotic resistance genes compared to surrounding water. This suggests that microplastics in rivers and waterways serve as platforms that concentrate harmful bacteria and help spread drug resistance, posing risks to communities that depend on these water sources.
Microplastic-associated pathogens and antimicrobial resistance in environment
This review examines how microplastics in the environment act as surfaces for disease-causing bacteria and antibiotic-resistant microbes to colonize and spread. Researchers found that microplastics can carry pathogens and facilitate the transfer of antimicrobial resistance genes between bacteria in water systems. The findings raise concerns that microplastic pollution may be contributing to the growing global challenge of antibiotic resistance.
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.