Http://www.f1000medicine.com/article/id/1098462

My F1000 Medicine | Browse the Faculties | Top 10s | Advanced Search | My Details | About | Prevalence and characterization of integrons from bacteria isolated from a slaughterhouse wastewater treatment plant. Moura A, Henriques I, Ribeiro R, Correia A J Antimicrob Chemother 2007 Dec 60(6):1243-50 [abstract on PubMed] [citations on Google Scholar] [related articles] This experimental study describes how wastewater treatment plants, where animal or human wastes and their associated microbiota mingle with aquatic microorganisms, constitute a potential hotspot for the dissemination of resistance genes among aquatic bacteria. This has the potential to increase significantly the pool of organisms that harbour undesirable genetic traits – in this case resistance to important antibacterial antibiotics. Integrons are responsible for the capture of gene cassettes and came to prominence because of their ability to capture genes encoding antibiotic resistance, aiding rapid dissemination of bacterial resistance through their location on mobile genetic elements, notably transposons and self-transmissible plasmids. Using dot-blot analysis, the presence of integron sequences in enterobacteria and aeromonads, representing gut-related organism and bacteria found in the aquatic environment respectively, was analysed and those bacteria carrying integron sequences were characterised, in particular to determine where integron sequences are located and how easily they may transfer in mating experiments. Samples were obtained from a wastewater treatment plant that only serves a slaughterhouse and these contained nine distinct cassette arrays, encoding resistance to beta-lactams, aminoglycosides and trimethoprim. Cassettes that encode resistance to aminoglycosides and trimethoprim were common to enterobacteria and aeromonads. To determine the significance of http://www.f1000medicine.com/article/id/1098462 this finding, it is important to establish the ease with which resistance genes can move between bacteria typically found in different habitats, in particular how easy it is for aquatic bacteria to act as donors of resistance genes to human or animal pathogens. Competing interests: No potential interests relevant to this article were reported. How to cite the Faculty of 1000 Medicine evaluation(s) for this paper 1) To cite all the evaluations for this article: Faculty of 1000 Medicine: evaluations for Moura A et al J Antimicrob Chemother 2007 Dec 60 (6) :1243-50 http://www.f1000medicine.com/article/id/1098462/evaluation 2) To cite an evaluation by a specific Faculty member: John Heritage: Faculty of 1000 Medicine, 18 Dec 2007 http://www.f1000medicine.com/article/id/1098462/evaluation 2008 Medicine Reports Ltd unless otherwise stated < [email protected] > Terms and conditions Legal info http://www.f1000medicine.com/article/id/1098462

Source: http://la.cesam.ua.pt/PaperHighlights/F1000_Medicine_review.pdf