Antibiotic resistance genes in aquatic systems: Sources, transmission, and risks

IF 4.1 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 MARINE & FRESHWATER BIOLOGY

Aquatic Toxicology Pub Date : 2025-04-29 DOI:10.1016/j.aquatox.2025.107392

Tingting Zhang , Linyi Fan , Ya-Nan Zhang

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

The widespread use of antibiotics has significantly contributed to the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), which have become a major challenge to global ecological and public health. Antibiotic resistance not only proliferates in clinical settings but also persists in aquatic systems, where its residues and cross-domain spread pose a dual threat to both ecosystems and human health. ARGs spread rapidly within microbial communities through horizontal gene transfer (HGT) and vertical gene transfer (VGT). Aquatic systems are the key transmission medium. This review summarizes recent studies on the Source-Transport-Sink dynamics of ARGs in aquatic environments, along with their environmental and health risk assessments, with a particular focus on the potential ecotoxicity of ARGs transmission. It also examines the distribution characteristics of ARGs across different regions and the ecological risk assessment methods employed, highlighting the limitations of existing models when addressing the complex behaviors of ARGs. By analyzing the potential hazards of ARGs to aquatic ecosystems and public health, this article aims to provide a scientific foundation for future research and the development of public policies.

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水生系统中的抗生素耐药基因：来源、传播和风险

抗生素的广泛使用极大地促进了抗生素耐药基因（ARGs）的传播，已成为全球生态和公共卫生的重大挑战。抗生素耐药性不仅在临床环境中扩散，而且在水生系统中持续存在，其残留和跨域传播对生态系统和人类健康构成双重威胁。ARGs通过水平基因转移（HGT）和垂直基因转移（VGT）在微生物群落中迅速传播。水生系统是主要的传播媒介。本文综述了近年来在水生环境中ARGs源-运输-汇动态及其环境和健康风险评估方面的研究，特别关注了ARGs传播的潜在生态毒性。研究了不同地区ARGs的分布特征和采用的生态风险评估方法，强调了现有模型在解决ARGs复杂行为时的局限性。本文旨在通过分析ARGs对水生生态系统和公众健康的潜在危害，为今后的研究和公共政策制定提供科学依据。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Aquatic Toxicology 环境科学-毒理学

CiteScore

7.10

自引率

4.40%

发文量

250

审稿时长

56 days

期刊介绍： Aquatic Toxicology publishes significant contributions that increase the understanding of the impact of harmful substances (including natural and synthetic chemicals) on aquatic organisms and ecosystems. Aquatic Toxicology considers both laboratory and field studies with a focus on marine/ freshwater environments. We strive to attract high quality original scientific papers, critical reviews and expert opinion papers in the following areas: Effects of harmful substances on molecular, cellular, sub-organismal, organismal, population, community, and ecosystem level; Toxic Mechanisms; Genetic disturbances, transgenerational effects, behavioral and adaptive responses; Impacts of harmful substances on structure, function of and services provided by aquatic ecosystems; Mixture toxicity assessment; Statistical approaches to predict exposure to and hazards of contaminants The journal also considers manuscripts in other areas, such as the development of innovative concepts, approaches, and methodologies, which promote the wider application of toxicological datasets to the protection of aquatic environments and inform ecological risk assessments and decision making by relevant authorities.