Aquatic Environments as Hotspots of Transferable Low-Level Quinolone Resistance and Their Potential Contribution to High-Level Quinolone Resistance.

ABSTRACT: The disposal of antibiotics in the aquatic environment favors the selection of bacteria exhibiting antibiotic resistance mechanisms. Quinolones are bactericidal antimicrobials extensively used in both human and animal medicine. Some of the quinolone-resistance mechanisms are encoded by different bacterial genes, whereas others are the result of mutations in the enzymes on which those antibiotics act. The worldwide occurrence of quinolone resistance genes in aquatic environments has been widely reported, particularly in areas impacted by urban discharges. The most commonly reported quinolone resistance gene, qnr, encodes for the Qnr proteins that protect DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV from quinolone activity. It is important to note that low-level resistance usually constitutes the

SUBMITTER: Miranda CD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9687057 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature