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Sajjad W, Ilahi N, Haq A, Shang Z, Nabi G, Rafiq M, Bahadur A, Banerjee A, Kang S. Bacteria populating freshly appeared supraglacial lake possess metals and antibiotic-resistant genes. Environ Res 2024; 247:118288. [PMID: 38262510 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2024.118288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2023] [Revised: 12/28/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2024] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
Antibiotic resistance (AR) has been extensively studied in natural habitats and clinical applications. AR is mainly reported with the use and misuse of antibiotics; however, little is known about its presence in antibiotic-free remote supraglacial lake environments. This study evaluated bacterial strains isolated from supraglacial lake debris and meltwater in Dook Pal Glacier, northern Pakistan, for antibiotic-resistant genes (ARGs) and metal-tolerant genes (MTGs) using conventional PCR. Several distinct ARGs were reported in the bacterial strains isolated from lake debris (92.5%) and meltwater (100%). In lake debris, 57.5% of isolates harbored the blaTEM gene, whereas 58.3% of isolates in meltwater possessed blaTEM and qnrA each. Among the ARGs, qnrA was dominant in debris isolates (19%), whereas in meltwater isolates, qnrA (15.2%) and blaTEM (15.2%) were dominant. ARGs were widely distributed among the bacterial isolates and different bacteria shared similar types of ARGs. Relatively greater number of ARGs were reported in Gram-negative bacterial strains. In addition, 92.5% of bacterial isolates from lake debris and 83.3% of isolates from meltwater harbored MTGs. Gene copA was dominant in meltwater isolates (50%), whereas czcA was greater in debris bacterial isolates (45%). Among the MTGs, czcA (18.75%) was dominant in debris strains, whereas copA (26.0%) was greater in meltwater isolates. This presents the co-occurrence and co-selection of MTGs and ARGs in a freshly appeared supraglacial lake. The same ARGs and MTGs were present in different bacteria, exhibiting horizontal gene transfer (HGT). Both positive and negative correlations were determined between ARGs and MTGs. The research provides insights into the existence of MTGs and ARGs in bacterial strains isolated from remote supraglacial lake environments, signifying the need for a more detailed study of bacteria harboring ARGs and MTGs in supraglacial lakes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wasim Sajjad
- State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Science, Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Nikhat Ilahi
- State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Abdul Haq
- Peshawar Laboratories Complex, Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Peshawar, 25120, Pakistan
| | - Zhanhuan Shang
- State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Ghulam Nabi
- Institute of Nature Conservation, Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland
| | - Muhammad Rafiq
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Life Sciences and Informatics, Balochistan University of Information Technology, Engineering and Management Sciences, Quetta, Pakistan
| | - Ali Bahadur
- State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Science, Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Abhishek Banerjee
- State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Science, Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, 730000, China
| | - Shichang Kang
- State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Science, Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, 730000, China.
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