Do, Thi Thuy and Smyth, Cian and Crispie, Fiona and Burgess, Catherine and Brennan, Fiona and Walsh, Fiona (2023) Comparison of soil and grass microbiomes and resistomes reveals grass as a greater antimicrobial resistance reservoir than soil. Science of The Total Environment, 857. p. 159179. ISSN 0048-9697

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Abstract

Grasslands cover a large proportion of global agricultural landmass used to feed herbivores and ruminants and link the environment to the food chain via animals onto humans. However, most scientific studies of antimicrobial resistance and microbiomes at the environmental – animal nexus have focused on soil or vegetables rather than grasslands. Based on previous microbiome phyllosphere-soil studies we hypothesised that the microbiome and resistomes across soil and grass would have a core of shared taxa and antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs), but that in addition each would also have a minority of unique signatures. Our data indicated grass contained a wider variety and higher relative abundance of ARGs and mobile genetic elements (MGEs) than soil with or without slurry amendments. The microbiomes of soil and grass were similar in content but varied in the composition proportionality. While there were commonalities across many of the ARGs present in soil and on grass their correlations with MGEs and bacteria differed, suggesting a source other than soil is also relevant for the resistome of grass. The variations in the relative abundances of ARGs in soil and on grass also indicated that either the MGEs or the bacteria carrying the ARGs comprised a higher relative abundance on grass than in soil. We conclude that while soil may be a source of some of these genes it cannot be the source for all ARGs and MGEs. Our data identifies grass as a more diverse and abundant reservoir of ARGs and MGEs in the environment than soil, which is significant to human and animal health when viewed in the context of grazing food animals.

Item Type:	Article
Keywords:	Phyllosphere; Bacterial communities; Soil; Antimicrobial resistance;
Academic Unit:	Faculty of Science and Engineering > Biology Faculty of Science and Engineering > Research Institutes > Human Health Institute
Item ID:	19102
Identification Number:	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159179
Depositing User:	Fiona Walsh
Date Deposited:	24 Oct 2024 14:14
Journal or Publication Title:	Science of The Total Environment
Publisher:	Elsevier
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	Publisher
Use Licence:	This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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