Altered Cell Viability, Morphology, and Motility under Ciprofloxacin Stress Influence the Transport and Resistance of Bacteria in Saturated Porous Media

The ubiquitous occurrence of antibiotics in the environment induces various stress responses of microbes and increases the risk of the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In this study, the transport and retention of Shewanella oneidensis cells in saturated porous media was investigated under different levels of ciprofloxacin (CIP) stress. Exposing to lethal CIP stress caused significant viability loss and stimulated cell transport due to increasing hydrophilicity and decreasing surface roughness. While exposure to sublethal CIP stress did not affect MR-1’s viability, elongation of cells promoted their retention in sand columns via straining and orientation effects. The elongated cells likely adopted an end-on configuration to minimize repulsive interaction energy when approaching sand surfaces and deposited in a side-on position due to local surface roughness and charge heterogeneity of sands. The more diminished breakthrough of MR-1 cells in redox-active media was ascribed to their improving extracellular electron transfer and energy taxis activities under sublethal CIP stress. Moreover, the retention of elongated cells in porous media facilitated the de novo emergence of a resistant gyrase mutant, whose remobilization might exacerbate the AMR dissemination.