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Li WJ, Li HZ, Xu J, Gillings MR, Zhu YG. Sewage Sludge Promotes the Accumulation of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Tomato Xylem. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2024; 58:10796-10805. [PMID: 38853591 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.4c02497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2024]
Abstract
Xylem serves as a conduit linking soil to the aboveground plant parts and facilitating the upward movement of microbes into leaves and fruits. Despite this potential, the composition of the xylem microbiome and its associated risks, including antibiotic resistance, are understudied. Here, we cultivated tomatoes and analyzed their xylem sap to assess the microbiome and antibiotic resistance profiles following treatment with sewage sludge. Our findings show that xylem microbes primarily originate from soil, albeit with reduced diversity in comparison to those of their soil microbiomes. Using single-cell Raman spectroscopy coupled with D2O labeling, we detected significantly higher metabolic activity in xylem microbes than in rhizosphere soil, with 87% of xylem microbes active compared to just 36% in the soil. Additionally, xylem was pinpointed as a reservoir for antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), with their abundance being 2.4-6.9 times higher than in rhizosphere soil. Sludge addition dramatically increased the abundance of ARGs in xylem and also increased their mobility and host pathogenicity. Xylem represents a distinct ecological niche for microbes and is a significant reservoir for ARGs. These results could be used to manage the resistome in crops and improve food safety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen-Jing Li
- Key Lab of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China
- University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Hong-Zhe Li
- Key Lab of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China
| | - Jiayang Xu
- Key Lab of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China
- University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Michael R Gillings
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales 2109, Australia
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales 2109, Australia
| | - Yong-Guan Zhu
- Key Lab of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
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Zhou R, Huang X, Xie Z, Ding Z, Wei H, Jin Q. A review focusing on mechanisms and ecological risks of enrichment and propagation of antibiotic resistance genes and mobile genetic elements by microplastic biofilms. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2024; 251:118737. [PMID: 38493850 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2024.118737] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2024] [Revised: 03/07/2024] [Accepted: 03/15/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024]
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) are emerging ubiquitous pollutants in aquatic environment and have received extensive global attention. In addition to the traditional studies related to the toxicity of MPs and their carrier effects, their unique surface-induced biofilm formation also increases the ecotoxicity potential of MPs from multiple perspectives. In this review, the ecological risks of MPs biofilms were summarized and assessed in detail from several aspects, including the formation and factors affecting the development of MPs biofilms, the selective enrichment and propagation mechanisms of current pollution status of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and mobile genetic elements (MGEs) in MPs biofilms, the dominant bacterial communities in MPs biofilms, as well as the potential risks of ARGs and MGEs transferring from MPs biofilms to aquatic organisms. On this basis, this paper also put forward the inadequacy and prospects of the current research and revealed that the MGEs-mediated ARG propagation on MPs under actual environmental conditions and the ecological risk of the transmission of ARGs and MGEs to aquatic organisms and human beings are hot spots for future research. Relevant research from the perspective of MPs biofilm should be carried out as soon as possible to provide support for the ecological pollution prevention and control of MPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ranran Zhou
- School of Environmental Science & Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, 30 Puzhu Southern Road, Nanjing, 211816, China
| | - Xirong Huang
- School of Environmental Science & Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, 30 Puzhu Southern Road, Nanjing, 211816, China
| | - Zhongtang Xie
- College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, MOE Laboratory for Earth Surface Process, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.
| | - Zhuhong Ding
- School of Environmental Science & Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, 30 Puzhu Southern Road, Nanjing, 211816, China
| | - Hengchen Wei
- School of Environmental Science & Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, 30 Puzhu Southern Road, Nanjing, 211816, China
| | - Qijie Jin
- School of Environmental Science & Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, 30 Puzhu Southern Road, Nanjing, 211816, China
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Vass M, Ramasamy KP, Andersson A. Microbial hitchhikers on microplastics: The exchange of aquatic microbes across distinct aquatic habitats. Environ Microbiol 2024; 26:e16618. [PMID: 38561820 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 03/16/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) have the potential to modify aquatic microbial communities and distribute microorganisms, including pathogens. This poses a potential risk to aquatic life and human health. Despite this, the fate of 'hitchhiking' microbes on MPs that traverse different aquatic habitats remains largely unknown. To address this, we conducted a 50-day microcosm experiment, manipulating estuarine conditions to study the exchange of bacteria and microeukaryotes between river, sea and plastisphere using a long-read metabarcoding approach. Our findings revealed a significant increase in bacteria on the plastisphere, including Pseudomonas, Sphingomonas, Hyphomonas, Brevundimonas, Aquabacterium and Thalassolituus, all of which are known for their pollutant degradation capabilities, specifically polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. We also observed a strong association of plastic-degrading fungi (i.e., Cladosporium and Plectosphaerella) and early-diverging fungi (Cryptomycota, also known as Rozellomycota) with the plastisphere. Sea MPs were primarily colonised by fungi (70%), with a small proportion of river-transported microbes (1%-4%). The mere presence of MPs in seawater increased the relative abundance of planktonic fungi from 2% to 25%, suggesting significant exchanges between planktonic and plastisphere communities. Using microbial source tracking, we discovered that MPs only dispersed 3.5% and 5.5% of river bacterial and microeukaryotic communities into the sea, respectively. Hence, although MPs select and facilitate the dispersal of ecologically significant microorganisms, drastic compositional changes across distinct aquatic habitats are unlikely.
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Affiliation(s)
- Máté Vass
- Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
- Division of Systems and Synthetic Biology, Department of Life Sciences, Science for Life Laboratory, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Kesava Priyan Ramasamy
- Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
- Umeå Marine Sciences Centre, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Agneta Andersson
- Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
- Umeå Marine Sciences Centre, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
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Lo LSH, Liu X, Qian PY, Häggblom MM, Cheng J. Microbial colonization and chemically influenced selective enrichment of bacterial pathogens on polycarbonate plastic. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2024; 31:8061-8071. [PMID: 38175506 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-31752-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2023] [Accepted: 12/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024]
Abstract
Plastic pollution in aquatic environments poses significant concerns due to its potential to serve as a refuge for aquatic pathogens. However, the role of plastic surfaces and microbial biofilm interfaces in facilitating pathogen development remains poorly understood. In this study, a microcosm setup was employed to investigate the interactions between plastics and the microbial community and examine the differences in bacterial community composition and potential pathogen occurrences between the plastisphere-biofilm and surrounding seawater. Community composition analysis combined with SEM observations over time indicated that biofilm extracellular polymeric substance formation over 14 days had a link with the relative abundance and succession patterns of pathogen taxa. Colony clusters were observed on biofilms from day 7 and coincided with higher bacterial pathogen dominance. On day 14, pathogen abundance overall decreased with a potentially degrading biofilm. Pseudomonas and Pseudoalteromonas were the dominant potential pathogen groups observed in the microcosm. When further subjected to chemical treatment as an imposed environmental stress over time, biofilm-associated Psuedoalteromonas sharply increased in abundance after three days of exposure, but quickly diminished by 14 days in favor of genera such as Acinetobacter, Pseudomonas, and Staphylococcus. These results suggest that environmental plastisphere-biofilms can promote the early selection, enrichment, and spread of pathogenic bacteria in the aquatic environment and could be later worsened under chemical and long-term pressure. This study provided new insights into the succession of pathogens in plastisphere biofilms, contributing to the understanding of pathogen risks involved in emerging plastisphere biofilms in light of global plastic pollution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linus Shing Him Lo
- Department of Science and Environmental Studies and State Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution, The Education University of Hong Kong, New Territories, Hong Kong, China
- The Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, 511458, China
| | - Xuan Liu
- The Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, 511458, China
- Department of Ocean Science and Hong Kong Branch of the Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China
| | - Pei-Yuan Qian
- The Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, 511458, China
- Department of Ocean Science and Hong Kong Branch of the Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China
| | - Max M Häggblom
- Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 76 Lipman Drive, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901-8525, USA
| | - Jinping Cheng
- Department of Science and Environmental Studies and State Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution, The Education University of Hong Kong, New Territories, Hong Kong, China.
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Canellas ALB, Abdon BB, Diniz MN, da Silva Oliveira Alves G, de Paula Lourenço MF, Machado WTV, Giambiagi-deMarval M, de Oliveira BFR, Laport MS. Antimicrobial resistance and biotechnological potential of plastic-associated bacteria isolated from an urban estuary. Environ Microbiol 2023; 25:2851-2863. [PMID: 37950375 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Accepted: 10/30/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
Plastics have quickly become one of the major pollutants in aquatic environments worldwide and solving the plastic pollution crisis is considered a central goal of modern society. In this study, 10 different plastic samples, including high- and low-density polyethylene and polypropylene, were collected from a deeply polluted urban estuary in Brazil. By employing different isolation and analysis approaches to investigate plastic-associated bacteria, a predominance of potentially pathogenic bacteria such as Acinetobacter, Aeromonas, and Vibrio was observed throughout all plastic samples. Bacteria typically found in the aquatic environment harboured clinically relevant genes encoding resistance to carbapenems (blaKPC ) and colistin (such as mcr-3 and mcr-4), along with genetic determinants associated with potentially active gene mobilization. Whole genome sequencing and annotation of three plastic-associated Vibrio strains further demonstrated the carriage of mobile genetic elements and antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes. On the other hand, bacteria isolated from the same samples were also able to produce esterases, lipases, and bioemulsifiers, thus highlighting that the plastisphere could also be of special interest from a biotechnological perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Luiza Bauer Canellas
- Instituto de Microbiologia Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Beatriz Balthazar Abdon
- Instituto de Microbiologia Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Matheus Nunes Diniz
- Instituto de Microbiologia Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | | | | | - Wilson Thadeu Valle Machado
- Departamento de Geoquímica, Instituto de Química, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Marcia Giambiagi-deMarval
- Instituto de Microbiologia Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | | | - Marinella Silva Laport
- Instituto de Microbiologia Paulo de Góes, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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