Microbial interactions as the key to understanding and controlling environmental spread of antibiotic resistance genes
Beyond abiotic factors, microbial interactions are critical yet understudied regulators of environmental antibiotic resistance gene (ARG) spread, whose neglect hinders control efforts. We synthesize their dual roles in ARG dissemination and advocate for integrated advanced methodologies combining tracking, modeling, and validation to decode interaction networks. Moreover, we propose novel interventions strategies that range from molecular disruption to network re-engineering, leveraging ecological insights to mitigate resistance spread across environmental compartments.
Authors
- Yinguang Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6463-5895)
- Pingfeng Yu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0402-773X)
- Junya Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7959-2701)
- Haining Huang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0380-3389)
- Wenguang Sun (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1808-8106)
- Ling Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2088-618X)
- Xinyi Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5590-4435)
- Kehan Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9556-9539)
- Lili Wei (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8904-8750)
- Zishan He
- Manzhu Bao
- Jinfeng Wang
Institutions
- Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse (CN)
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control (CN)
- Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences (CN)
- Zhejiang University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- npj Antimicrobials and Resistance
- Published
- 2025-12-04
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s44259-025-00174-4
- Primary Topic
- Pharmaceutical and Antibiotic Environmental Impacts
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- Tongji University