Spatial Differentiation of Heavy Metals/Metalloids, Microbial Risk Genes and Soil Microbiota in a Sulfur-Contaminated Landscape.

ABSTRACT: Legacy sulfur smelting has left behind complex contamination landscapes, yet the spatial structuring of microbial risks and adaptation strategies across soil profiles remains insufficiently understood. Microbial risk genes, including those conferring resistance to antibiotic resistance (ARGs), biocide and metal resistance (BRGs/MRGs), and virulence (VFGs), are increasingly recognized as co-selected under heavy metal stress, posing both ecological and public health concerns. In this study, we integrated geochemical analyses with metagenomic sequencing and functional annotation to jointly characterize the vertical (0-7 m) and horizontal (~2 km) distribution of heavy metals/metalloids, microbial communities, and functional risk genes at a historic smelting site in Zhenxiong, Yunnan. Heavy met

SUBMITTER: Li L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12473080 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature