Coastal mudflats as reservoirs of extracellular antibiotic resistance genes: Studies in Eastern China |
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Affiliation: | 1. College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing 211816, China;2. State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China;3. School of Medicine, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China;4. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, Houston 77005, USA |
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Abstract: | Despite coastal mudflats serving as essential ecological zones interconnecting terrestrial/freshwater and marine systems, little is known about the profiles of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in this area. In this study, characteristics of typical ARGs, involving both intracellular (iARGs) and extracellular ARGs (eARGs) at different physical states, were explored in over 1000 km of coastal mudflats in Eastern China. Results indicated the presence of iARGs and eARGs at states of both freely present or attached by particles. The abundance of eARGs was significantly higher than that of iARGs (87.3% vs 12.7%), and their dominance was more significant than those in other habitats (52.7%-76.3%). ARG abundance, especially for eARGs, showed an increasing trend (p < 0.05) from southern (Nantong) to northern (Lianyungang) coastal mudflats. Higher salinity facilitated the transformation from iARGs to eARGs, and smaller soil particle size was conducive to the persistence of eARGs in northern coastal mudflats. This study addresses the neglected function of coastal mudflats as eARGs reservoirs. |
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Keywords: | Corresponding authors. Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) Extracellular antibiotic resistance genes (eARGs) Coastal mudflats Amplicon sequencing Geochemical variable Mobile genetic elements |
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