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Isolation and Identification of Waterborne Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria and Molecular Characterization of their Antibiotic Resistance Genes
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Viruses as key reservoirs of antibiotic resistance genes in the environment

Didier Debroas1, Cléa Siguret2

  • 1CNRS, Laboratoire Microorganismes: Genome et Environnement, Université Clermont Auvergne, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France. didier.debroas@uca.fr.

The ISME Journal
|July 31, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Viruses, particularly free viruses, carry antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and can transfer them to bacteria. This study highlights viruses as key vehicles for ARG dissemination in the environment.

Area of Science:

  • Environmental microbiology
  • Genetics
  • Virology

Background:

  • Antibiotic resistance is a global health crisis, with bacteria acquiring antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) through horizontal gene transfer.
  • The role of phages (viruses that infect bacteria) in the environmental dissemination of ARGs is not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the presence and role of phages and viruses in the environmental spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs).
  • To determine if viruses act as significant vectors for ARG dissemination.

Main Methods:

  • Metagenomic analysis of viral DNA to identify predicted ARGs.
  • Network analysis to explore virus-pathogen associations.
  • Calculation of dN/dS ratios to infer selection pressures on ARGs.

Main Results:

  • Prophages contained a lower proportion of ARGs (0-0.0028%) compared to free viruses (0.001-0.1%).
  • Beta-lactamase genes were found in swine gut viruses (0.10% of predicted genes).
  • ARG distribution in viruses correlated with human activity, and negative selection was observed for viral ARGs.

Conclusions:

  • Viruses, especially free viruses, are significant vehicles for ARG transfer in the environment, comparable to plasmids.
  • Viruses facilitate the dissemination of ARGs to putative pathogens like Enterobacterales and Vibrionaceae.
  • Viral mediation allows for broader temporal and spatial spread of ARGs than bacterial genomes alone.

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