Dataset Information

Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Phage Particles from Antarctic and Mediterranean Seawater Ecosystems.

ABSTRACT: Anthropogenic activities are a key factor in the development of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, a growing problem worldwide. Nevertheless, antibiotics and resistances were being generated by bacterial communities long before their discovery by humankind, and might occur in areas without human influence. Bacteriophages are known to play a relevant role in the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in aquatic environments. In this study, five ARGs (blaTEM, blaCTX-M-1, blaCTX-M-9, sul1 and tetW) were monitored in phage particles isolated from seawater of two different locations: (i) the Mediterranean coast, subjected to high anthropogenic pressure, and (ii) the Antarctic coast, where the anthropogenic impact is low. Although found in lower quantities, ARG-containing phage particles were more prevalent among the Antarctic than the Mediterranean seawater samples and Antarctic bacterial communities were confirmed as their source. In the Mediterranean area, ARG-containing phages from anthropogenic fecal pollution might allow ARG transmission through the food chain. ARGs were detected in phage particles isolated from fish (Mediterranean, Atlantic, farmed, and frozen), the most abundant being ?-lactamases. Some of these particles were infectious in cultures of the fecal bacteria Escherichia coli. By serving as ARG reservoirs in marine environments, including those with low human activity, such as the Antarctic, phages could contribute to ARG transmission between bacterial communities.

SUBMITTER: Blanco-Picazo P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7565065 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Phage Particles from Antarctic and Mediterranean Seawater Ecosystems.

Blanco-Picazo Pedro P Roscales Gabriel G Toribio-Avedillo Daniel D Gómez-Gómez Clara C Avila Conxita C Ballesté Elisenda E Muniesa Maite M Rodríguez-Rubio Lorena L

Microorganisms 20200824 9

Anthropogenic activities are a key factor in the development of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, a growing problem worldwide. Nevertheless, antibiotics and resistances were being generated by bacterial communities long before their discovery by humankind, and might occur in areas without human influence. Bacteriophages are known to play a relevant role in the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in aquatic environments. In this study, five ARGs (blaTEM, bla< ...[more]

PMID: 32847015

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Project description:BackgroundAntibiotic resistance developed by bacteria is a significant threat to global health. Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) spread across different bacterial populations through multiple dissemination routes, including horizontal gene transfer mediated by bacteriophages. ARGs carried by bacteriophages are considered especially threatening due to their prolonged persistence in the environment, fast replication rates, and ability to infect diverse bacterial hosts. Several studies employing qPCR and viral metagenomics have shown that viral fraction and viral sequence reads in clinical and environmental samples carry many ARGs. However, only a few ARGs have been found in viral contigs assembled from metagenome reads, with most of these genes lacking effective antibiotic resistance phenotypes. Owing to the wide application of viral metagenomics, nevertheless, different classes of ARGs are being continuously found in viral metagenomes acquired from diverse environments. As such, the presence and functionality of ARGs encoded by bacteriophages remain up for debate.ResultsWe evaluated ARGs excavated from viral contigs recovered from urban surface water viral metagenome data. In virome reads and contigs, diverse ARGs, including polymyxin resistance genes, multidrug efflux proteins, and β-lactamases, were identified. In particular, when a lenient threshold of e value of ≤ 1 × e-5 and query coverage of ≥ 60% were employed in the Resfams database, the novel β-lactamases blaHRV-1 and blaHRVM-1 were found. These genes had unique sequences, forming distinct clades of class A and subclass B3 β-lactamases, respectively. Minimum inhibitory concentration analyses for E. coli strains harboring blaHRV-1 and blaHRVM-1 and catalytic kinetics of purified HRV-1 and HRVM-1 showed reduced susceptibility to penicillin, narrow- and extended-spectrum cephalosporins, and carbapenems. These genes were also found in bacterial metagenomes, indicating that they were harbored by actively infecting phages.ConclusionOur results showed that viruses in the environment carry as-yet-unreported functional ARGs, albeit in small quantities. We thereby suggest that environmental bacteriophages could be reservoirs of widely variable, unknown ARGs that could be disseminated via virus-host interactions. Video abstract.

Project description:Understanding underwater optics in natural waters is essential in evaluating aquatic primary production and risk of UV exposure in aquatic habitats. Changing environmental conditions related with global climate change, which imply potential contrasting changes in underwater light climate further emphasize the need to gain insights into patterns related with underwater optics for more accurate future predictions. The present study evaluated penetration of solar radiation in six sub-Antarctic estuaries and fjords in Chilean North Patagonian region (39-44°S) and in an Antarctic bay (62°S). Based on vertical diffuse attenuation coefficients (Kd), derived from measurements with a submersible multichannel radiometer, average summer UV penetration depth (z1%) in these water bodies ranged 2-11 m for UV-B (313 nm), 4-27 m for UV-A (395 nm), and 7-30 m for PAR (euphotic zone). UV attenuation was strongest in the shallow Quempillén estuary, while Fildes Bay (Antarctica) exhibited the highest transparency. Optically non-homogeneous water layers and seasonal variation in transparency (lower in winter) characterized Comau Fjord and Puyuhuapi Channel. In general, multivariate analysis based on Kd values of UV and PAR wavelengths discriminated strongly Quempillén estuary and Puyuhuapi Channel from other study sites. Spatial (horizontal) variation within the estuary of Valdivia river reflected stronger attenuation in zones receiving river impact, while within Fildes Bay a lower spatial variation in water transparency could in general be related to closeness of glaciers, likely due to increased turbidity through ice-driven processes. Higher transparency and deeper UV-B penetration in proportion to UV-A/visible wavelengths observed in Fildes Bay suggests a higher risk for Antarctic ecosystems reflected by e.g. altered UV-B damage vs. photorepair under UV-A/PAR. Considering that damage repair processes often slow down under cool temperatures, adverse UV impact could be further exacerbated by cold temperatures in this location, together with episodes of ozone depletion. Overall, the results emphasize the marked spatial (horizontal and vertical) and temporal heterogeneity of optical characteristics, and challenges that these imply for estimations of underwater optics.

Dataset Information

Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Phage Particles from Antarctic and Mediterranean Seawater Ecosystems.

Publications

Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Phage Particles from Antarctic and Mediterranean Seawater Ecosystems.

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