Slow spatial migration can help eradicate cooperative antimicrobial resistance in time-varying environments

Area of Science:

• Evolutionary biology
• Microbial ecology
• Mathematical modeling

Background:

• Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a significant global health threat.
• AMR often arises from cooperative behaviors, like shared drug protection within microbial communities.
• Microbial evolution is influenced by spatial structure, migration, and environmental fluctuations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how migration and environmental variability affect the eco-evolutionary dynamics of cooperative AMR.
• To determine the migration rates and environmental conditions that can lead to the clearance of resistant strains.
• To understand the conditions under which resistant strains go extinct in a metapopulation.

Main Methods:

• Modeling a two-dimensional metapopulation of drug-resistant and sensitive cells in a time-changing environment.
• Utilizing analytical and computational tools to study eco-evolutionary dynamics.
• Analyzing the impact of migration rates and environmental variability on resistance spread.

Main Results:

• Contrary to static environments, fluctuating environments alter the effect of migration on AMR.
• Slow, non-zero migration rates can accelerate and enhance the clearance of antimicrobial resistance.
• Specific near-optimal environmental conditions were identified for rapid resistance eradication.

Conclusions:

• Migration and environmental variability play crucial roles in the eco-evolutionary dynamics of AMR.
• Targeted manipulation of migration and environmental fluctuations may offer strategies to combat AMR spread.
• Findings have implications for laboratory experiments and broader ecological contexts.