Metagenomic analysis reveals the shared and distinct features of the soil resistome across tundra, temperate prairie, and tropical ecosystems.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Soil is an important reservoir of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), but their potential risk in different ecosystems as well as response to anthropogenic land use change is unknown. We used a metagenomic approach and datasets with well-characterized metadata to investigate ARG types and amounts in soil DNA of three native ecosystems: Alaskan tundra, US Midwestern prairie, and Amazon rainforest, as well as the effect of conversion of the latter two to agriculture and pasture, respectively.

Results

High diversity (242 ARG subtypes) and abundance (0.184-0.242 ARG copies per 16S rRNA gene copy) were observed irrespective of ecosystem, with multidrug resistance and efflux pump the dominant class and mechanism. Ten regulatory genes were identified and they accounted f

SUBMITTER: Qian X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8122544 | biostudies-literature | 2021 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature