Microplastics accumulate priority antibiotic-resistant pathogens: Evidence from the riverine plastisphere

Silva, Isabel; Rodrigues, Elsa T.; Tacão, Marta; Henriques, Isabel

doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2023.121995

Cited by 15 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 71 publications

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“…As expected from previous studies (e.g. [ 130 ], these were also found as part of the microbial community on solid substrates such as plastics, but in much lower abundance (Fig. 1 C).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 89%

“…Horizontal gene transfer is more likely to occur on solid surfaces, and plastics have been shown to facilitate this process [ 10 ], but natural surfaces also need to be taken into account, as demonstrated here. While we chose to perform our in-situ incubations downstream from the WWTP effluent because these locations are known for enhancing the abundance of both pathogen-like organisms and ARGs [ 7 , 130 ], different incubation times, other compartments (e.g. river sediments or WWTP upstream locations), as well as other materials and plastic types, should be contemplated in future studies.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The surface properties of submerged materials are likely to play a key role in the development of microbial community assemblages and, hence, the importance of the choice of adequate control materials for comparison. While we used wood in the present study, more inert materials such as ceramics [ 115 ], rocks [ 154 ], glass [ 48 ] or sand [ 130 ] have been previously used as controls. However, these materials may not necessarily exhibit the same physical behaviour in water as plastics (e.g.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Microbial hitchhikers harbouring antimicrobial-resistance genes in the riverine plastisphere

Zadjelovic,

Wright,

Borsetto

et al. 2023

Microbiome

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Background The widespread nature of plastic pollution has given rise to wide scientific and social concern regarding the capacity of these materials to serve as vectors for pathogenic bacteria and reservoirs for Antimicrobial Resistance Genes (ARG). In- and ex-situ incubations were used to characterise the riverine plastisphere taxonomically and functionally in order to determine whether antibiotics within the water influenced the ARG profiles in these microbiomes and how these compared to those on natural surfaces such as wood and their planktonic counterparts. Results We show that plastics support a taxonomically distinct microbiome containing potential pathogens and ARGs. While the plastisphere was similar to those biofilms that grew on wood, they were distinct from the surrounding water microbiome. Hence, whilst potential opportunistic pathogens (i.e. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter and Aeromonas) and ARG subtypes (i.e. those that confer resistance to macrolides/lincosamides, rifamycin, sulfonamides, disinfecting agents and glycopeptides) were predominant in all surface-related microbiomes, especially on weathered plastics, a completely different set of potential pathogens (i.e. Escherichia, Salmonella, Klebsiella and Streptococcus) and ARGs (i.e. aminoglycosides, tetracycline, aminocoumarin, fluoroquinolones, nitroimidazole, oxazolidinone and fosfomycin) dominated in the planktonic compartment. Our genome-centric analysis allowed the assembly of 215 Metagenome Assembled Genomes (MAGs), linking ARGs and other virulence-related genes to their host. Interestingly, a MAG belonging to Escherichia –that clearly predominated in water– harboured more ARGs and virulence factors than any other MAG, emphasising the potential virulent nature of these pathogenic-related groups. Finally, ex-situ incubations using environmentally-relevant concentrations of antibiotics increased the prevalence of their corresponding ARGs, but different riverine compartments –including plastispheres– were affected differently by each antibiotic. Conclusions Our results provide insights into the capacity of the riverine plastisphere to harbour a distinct set of potentially pathogenic bacteria and function as a reservoir of ARGs. The environmental impact that plastics pose if they act as a reservoir for either pathogenic bacteria or ARGs is aggravated by the persistence of plastics in the environment due to their recalcitrance and buoyancy. Nevertheless, the high similarities with microbiomes growing on natural co-occurring materials and even more worrisome microbiome observed in the surrounding water highlights the urgent need to integrate the analysis of all environmental compartments when assessing risks and exposure to pathogens and ARGs in anthropogenically-impacted ecosystems.

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“…As expected from previous studies (e.g. [ 130 ], these were also found as part of the microbial community on solid substrates such as plastics, but in much lower abundance (Fig. 1 C).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Microbial hitchhikers harbouring antimicrobial-resistance genes in the riverine plastisphere

Zadjelovic,

Wright,

Borsetto

et al. 2023

Microbiome

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“…To confirm this trend, the relative abundance of the model pathogen Klebsiella pneumoniae was assessed using HT-qPCR. It was chosen as the model pathogen, as multi-drug resistant isolates of K. pneumoniae were previously reported as main pathogenic colonizers of plastic particles in the environment 40 . K. pneumoniae was found on used filters at significantly increased relative abundance of 4.7 ± 3.2 × 10 -5 per 16S compared to the unused control filters (2.5 ± 1.7 × 10 -5 , P < 0.001, n = 24, ANOVA, Fig.…”

Section: Used Cigarette Filters Are Colonized By a Distinct Microbial...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Cigarette smoking promotes the spread of antimicrobial resistance in the human lung and the environment

Fang,

Konyali,

Fischer

et al. 2023

Preprint

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While immediate health risks of cigarette smoking are well-established, indirect health impacts of cigarette-derived pollutants through proliferation of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) among bacteria remain understudied. Here, exposure to cigarette smoke condensate at relevant concentrations resulted in >2-fold elevated transfer rates of a multi-drug-resistance encoding plasmid between Pseudomonas strains in artificial lung sputum medium. This effect was connected to elevated reactive oxygen species production as part of the bacterial stress response when exposed to cigarette-derived toxicants. Similar results were obtained under exposure to cigarette ash leachate in environmental medium. Further, used cigarette filters enriched in toxic residues were submerged in a wastewater stream, and colonized by altered microbial communities compared to unused filters. These communities were significantly enriched in pathogens and AMR. Hence, filters could facilitate hitchhiking of high-risk bacteria to novel environments. We demonstrate that cigarette-derived compounds can promote the spread of AMR within the human lung and natural environments.

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Biofilm formation on microplastics and interactions with antibiotics, antibiotic resistance genes and pathogens in aquatic environment

Jia,

Liu,

Zhao

et al. 2024

Eco-Environment & Health

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Microplastics accumulate priority antibiotic-resistant pathogens: Evidence from the riverine plastisphere

Cited by 15 publications

References 71 publications

Microbial hitchhikers harbouring antimicrobial-resistance genes in the riverine plastisphere

Microbial hitchhikers harbouring antimicrobial-resistance genes in the riverine plastisphere

Cigarette smoking promotes the spread of antimicrobial resistance in the human lung and the environment

Biofilm formation on microplastics and interactions with antibiotics, antibiotic resistance genes and pathogens in aquatic environment

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