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Updated: Sep 22, 2026

Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction-based Analyses of Murine Intestinal Microbiota After Oral Antibiotic Treatment
Published on: November 17, 2018
[Review of Multifactorial Interaction Mechanisms of Environmental Behavior of Antibiotics in Soil]
Pei-Wen Zhang1,2, Si-Min Li2,3, Yuan-Qing Bu2,3,4
1Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012, China.
Abstract:
The extensive use of antibiotics in agriculture, animal husbandry, and healthcare has resulted in their persistent accumulation in soils, threatening ecosystems and public health through food chain transmission and the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes. The environmental risks associated with antibiotics are largely determined by their transport behaviors, which are jointly regulated by physicochemical conditions and microbial processes. However, most existing studies focus on individual factors, and systematic understanding of their interactions remains limited, constraining accurate prediction of antibiotic fate and effective risk management. This review synthesizes current knowledge on the major factors governing antibiotic transport in soils and their interdependencies, highlighting several key mechanisms. Initial retention is primarily controlled by adsorption to soil minerals and organic matter. Environmental variables such as pH, ionic strength, and redox potential influence transport pathways by modulating adsorption-desorption equilibria. Colloidal particles act as both sorbents and mobile carriers, while microbial degradation reduces parent compound persistence but may simultaneously enhance mobility through the production of polar metabolites. A landfill soil-leachate system is further presented as a representative scenario to illustrate the coupled "physicochemical initiation-colloid mediation-microbial feedback" cascade, thereby providing a conceptual basis for understanding multi-factor interactions in complex environments. In addition, most current findings are derived from simplified laboratory experiments, which limits their applicability to real-world conditions. Future research should emphasize multi-scale, in situ investigations and incorporate multi-media modeling frameworks to unravel interactive mechanisms, refine risk assessment, and guide mitigation strategies for antibiotic contamination.
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