Profiles and risk assessment of antibiotic resistome between Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and polar regions
Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are increasingly recognized as a global public health threat, with glaciers acting as reservoirs for ARGs transported via atmospheric pathways. Warming climate accelerates glacier melting, releasing ARGs into downstream environments, posing ecological health and su...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-12-01
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| Series: | Geography and Sustainability |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666683925000811 |
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| author | Zhenzhe Wu Guannan Mao Yuan Gou Mukan Ji Qingqing Ma Yongqin Liu |
| author_facet | Zhenzhe Wu Guannan Mao Yuan Gou Mukan Ji Qingqing Ma Yongqin Liu |
| author_sort | Zhenzhe Wu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are increasingly recognized as a global public health threat, with glaciers acting as reservoirs for ARGs transported via atmospheric pathways. Warming climate accelerates glacier melting, releasing ARGs into downstream environments, posing ecological health and sustainable aquatic ecosystem development challenges. However, the distribution profiles of ARGs and their risks in glaciers from the polar region remain unclear. This study used 294 metagenomic sequences to investigate the distribution and risks of ARGs in glaciers across the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, Antarctica, and the Arctic regions and compared them with adjacent and anthropogenically impacted environments. Among the three glacier regions studied, the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau exhibited the highest abundance of ARGs, whereas Antarctica displayed the lowest. ARG abundance in adjacent environments was comparable to that in the glaciers of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, but in the anthropogenically impacted environment, it was significantly higher than in glaciers. A shared resistome was identified in glaciers, dominated by bacitracin, multidrug, and macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin (MLS) resistance genes. The bacA gene, which is related to bacitracin resistance, was the most common subtype, indicating that it is naturally present in microbial communities of glaciers. Risk assessments showed that 74.1 %–78.9 % of ARGs were low-risk in the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and polar glaciers, indicating minimal human influence. However, 7.3 %–8.0 % were classified as high-risk, posing potential threats through horizontal gene transfer (HGT) and the spread of multidrug-resistant pathogens. These findings highlight the need to monitor ARGs in glacier environments, as climate change accelerates glacier melting and subsequent release of ARGs into downstream ecosystems. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a32e549049464a429b7be3a6adfad0cd |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2666-6839 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-12-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Geography and Sustainability |
| spelling | doaj-art-a32e549049464a429b7be3a6adfad0cd2025-08-23T04:49:16ZengElsevierGeography and Sustainability2666-68392025-12-016610034210.1016/j.geosus.2025.100342Profiles and risk assessment of antibiotic resistome between Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and polar regionsZhenzhe Wu0Guannan Mao1Yuan Gou2Mukan Ji3Qingqing Ma4Yongqin Liu5Center for the Pan-third Pole Environment, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, ChinaCenter for the Pan-third Pole Environment, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, ChinaJserra Catholic High School, CA, USACenter for the Pan-third Pole Environment, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, ChinaCenter for the Pan-third Pole Environment, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, ChinaCenter for the Pan-third Pole Environment, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China; State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Resources and Environment (TPESRE), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Corresponding author at: Lanzhou University, No.222, Tianshui South Road, Chengguan District, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, China.Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are increasingly recognized as a global public health threat, with glaciers acting as reservoirs for ARGs transported via atmospheric pathways. Warming climate accelerates glacier melting, releasing ARGs into downstream environments, posing ecological health and sustainable aquatic ecosystem development challenges. However, the distribution profiles of ARGs and their risks in glaciers from the polar region remain unclear. This study used 294 metagenomic sequences to investigate the distribution and risks of ARGs in glaciers across the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, Antarctica, and the Arctic regions and compared them with adjacent and anthropogenically impacted environments. Among the three glacier regions studied, the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau exhibited the highest abundance of ARGs, whereas Antarctica displayed the lowest. ARG abundance in adjacent environments was comparable to that in the glaciers of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, but in the anthropogenically impacted environment, it was significantly higher than in glaciers. A shared resistome was identified in glaciers, dominated by bacitracin, multidrug, and macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin (MLS) resistance genes. The bacA gene, which is related to bacitracin resistance, was the most common subtype, indicating that it is naturally present in microbial communities of glaciers. Risk assessments showed that 74.1 %–78.9 % of ARGs were low-risk in the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and polar glaciers, indicating minimal human influence. However, 7.3 %–8.0 % were classified as high-risk, posing potential threats through horizontal gene transfer (HGT) and the spread of multidrug-resistant pathogens. These findings highlight the need to monitor ARGs in glacier environments, as climate change accelerates glacier melting and subsequent release of ARGs into downstream ecosystems.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666683925000811Antibiotic resistance genesGlaciersAntarcticaArcticQinghai-Xizang PlateauRisk |
| spellingShingle | Zhenzhe Wu Guannan Mao Yuan Gou Mukan Ji Qingqing Ma Yongqin Liu Profiles and risk assessment of antibiotic resistome between Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and polar regions Geography and Sustainability Antibiotic resistance genes Glaciers Antarctica Arctic Qinghai-Xizang Plateau Risk |
| title | Profiles and risk assessment of antibiotic resistome between Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and polar regions |
| title_full | Profiles and risk assessment of antibiotic resistome between Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and polar regions |
| title_fullStr | Profiles and risk assessment of antibiotic resistome between Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and polar regions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Profiles and risk assessment of antibiotic resistome between Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and polar regions |
| title_short | Profiles and risk assessment of antibiotic resistome between Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and polar regions |
| title_sort | profiles and risk assessment of antibiotic resistome between qinghai xizang plateau and polar regions |
| topic | Antibiotic resistance genes Glaciers Antarctica Arctic Qinghai-Xizang Plateau Risk |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666683925000811 |
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