Influence of Legacy Mercury on Antibiotic Resistomes: Evidence from Agricultural Soils with Different Cropping Systems.
Environ Sci Technol
; 55(20): 13913-13922, 2021 10 19.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34613706
ABSTRACT
Agricultural soils are important reservoirs for antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), which have close linkage to human health via crop production. Metal stress in environments may function as a selection pressure for antibiotic resistomes. However, there is still a lack of field studies focusing on the effect of historical mercury (Hg) contamination on antibiotic resistomes in agricultural soils. Here, we explored the ARG profile in soils with different cropping systems (paddy and upland) and linked them to legacy Hg exposure. We found that ARG profiles were significantly different between paddy and upland soils. However, both paddy and upland soils with long-term field Hg contamination harbored higher diversity and abundance of ARGs than non-polluted soils. The co-occurrence network reveals significant associations among Hg, Hg resistance genes, mobile genetic elements (MGEs), and ARGs. Together with path analysis showing legacy Hg possibly affecting soil resistomes through the shifts of soil microbiota, Hg resistance genes, and MGEs, we suggest that legacy Hg-induced potential co-selection might elevate the ARG level. Redundancy analysis further supports that legacy Hg pollution had a significant association with ARG variations in the paddy and upland soils (P < 0.01). Collectively, our results highlight the underappreciated role of legacy Hg as a potential persistent selecting agent in contributing to soil ARGs in agroecosystems.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Suelo
/
Mercurio
Límite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Environ Sci Technol
Año:
2021
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
China