| Title | Constitutive presence of antibiotic resistance genes within the bacterial community of a large subalpine lake |
| Abstract | The fate of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in environmental microbial communities is of primary concern as prodromal of a potential transfer to pathogenic bacteria. Although of diverse origin, the persistence of ARGs in aquatic environments is highly influenced by anthropic activities, allowing potential control actions in well-studied environments. However, knowledge of abundance and space-time distribution of ARGs in ecosystems is still scarce. Using quantitative real-time PCR, we investigated the presence and the abundance of twelve ARGs (against tetracyclines, ?-lactams, aminoglycosides, quinolones and sulphonamides) at different sampling sites, depths and seasons, in Lake Maggiore, a large subalpine lake, and in the area of its watershed. We then evaluated the correlation between each ARG and a number of ecological parameters in the water column in the deepest part of the lake. Our results suggest the constitutive presence of at least four ARGs within the bacterial community with a high proportion of bacteria potentially resistant to tetracyclines and sulphonamides. The presence of these ARGs was independent of the total bacterial density and temperature. The dynamics of tet(A) and sulII genes were, however, positively correlated with dissolved oxygen and negatively to chlorophyll a, suggesting that the resistant microbes inhabit specific niches. These observations indicate that the lake is a reservoir of antibiotic resistances, highlighting the need of a deeper understanding of the sources of ARGs and the factors allowing their persistence in waters. |
| Source | Molecular ecology (Print) 24 (15), pp. 3888–3900 |
| Keywords | anthropic impactantibiotic resistance genesmicrobial ecologyquantitative real-time PCRsubalpine lakes |
| Journal | Molecular ecology (Print) |
| Editor | Blackwell Scientific Publications,, Oxford, Regno Unito |
| Year | 2015 |
| Type | Articolo in rivista |
| DOI | 10.1111/mec.13293 |
| Authors | Di Cesare, Andrea; Eckert, Ester M.; Teruggi, Alessia; Fontaneto, Diego; Bertoni, Roberto; Callieri, Cristiana; Corno, Gianluca |
| Text | 333027 2015 10.1111/mec.13293 Scopus 2 s2.0 84937726206 ISI Web of Science WOS WOS 000358335300009 anthropic impact antibiotic resistance genes microbial ecology quantitative real time PCR subalpine lakes Constitutive presence of antibiotic resistance genes within the bacterial community of a large subalpine lake Di Cesare, Andrea; Eckert, Ester M.; Teruggi, Alessia; Fontaneto, Diego; Bertoni, Roberto; Callieri, Cristiana; Corno, Gianluca National Research Council Institute of Ecosystem Study CNR ISE The fate of antibiotic resistance genes ARGs in environmental microbial communities is of primary concern as prodromal of a potential transfer to pathogenic bacteria. Although of diverse origin, the persistence of ARGs in aquatic environments is highly influenced by anthropic activities, allowing potential control actions in well studied environments. However, knowledge of abundance and space time distribution of ARGs in ecosystems is still scarce. Using quantitative real time PCR, we investigated the presence and the abundance of twelve ARGs against tetracyclines, lactams, aminoglycosides, quinolones and sulphonamides at different sampling sites, depths and seasons, in Lake Maggiore, a large subalpine lake, and in the area of its watershed. We then evaluated the correlation between each ARG and a number of ecological parameters in the water column in the deepest part of the lake. Our results suggest the constitutive presence of at least four ARGs within the bacterial community with a high proportion of bacteria potentially resistant to tetracyclines and sulphonamides. The presence of these ARGs was independent of the total bacterial density and temperature. The dynamics of tet A and sulII genes were, however, positively correlated with dissolved oxygen and negatively to chlorophyll a, suggesting that the resistant microbes inhabit specific niches. These observations indicate that the lake is a reservoir of antibiotic resistances, highlighting the need of a deeper understanding of the sources of ARGs and the factors allowing their persistence in waters. 24 Published version http //onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mec.13293/full di cesare 2015 2015_MolEcol_Di_Cesare_et_al.pdf Articolo in rivista Blackwell Scientific Publications, 0962 1083 Molecular ecology Print Molecular ecology Print Mol. ecol. Print Molecular ecology. Print estermaria.eckert ECKERT ESTER MARIA roberto.bertoni BERTONI ROBERTO cristiana.callieri CALLIERI CRISTIANA gianluca.corno CORNO GIANLUCA diego.fontaneto FONTANETO DIEGO andrea.dicesare DI CESARE ANDREA |
