Auxin inhibited colonization of antibiotic resistant bacteria in soybean sprouts and spread of resistance genes to endophytic bacteria: Highlighting energy metabolism and immunity mechanism

Antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are widely in vegetables, posing health risk. Plant auxins are commonly used to enhance vegetable yield, yet the regulatory mechanisms governing their impact on ARGs transmission to endophytic bacteria remain poorly understood. This study tracked ARB colonization and ARGs spread into endophytic bacteria in soybean sprouts exposed to gibberellin (GA) and 6-benzyladenine (BA). The application of GA and BA during the imbibition, sprouting, and germination periods of soybean sprouts all inhibited the transfer of ARB and ARGs. The enrichment of ARB and ARGs in different tissues of soybean sprouts was ranked as seed coat > hypocotyl > cotyledon. BA and GA enhanced the stability of plant cell wall-cell membrane system, promoted energy metabolism in plants, and activated the immunity mechanism. Especially, the plant hormone signal transduction pathway under GA exposure explained 44.8 % and 96.7 % of inhibition on ARB colonization and ARGs transfer, respectively; the plant-pathogen interaction pathway dominated the inhibition of antibiotic resistance under BA exposure, which explained 51 % and 65.9 % of inhibition on ARB colonization and ARGs transfer. These findings provide new insights into ARB colonization in soybean sprouts and the transmission of ARGs to endophytic bacteria under auxin stress.