Project Details
Projekt
Effects of veterinary medicines in manure on the abundance and transfer of bacterial antibiotic resistance genes in soils in dependence of varying soil moisture conditions
Applicant
Professorin Dr. Kornelia Smalla
Subject Area
Soil Sciences
Term
from 2011 to 2014
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 5471428
Research of B3 revealed that in two different soils repeatedly treated with sulfadiazine (SDZ)-containing manure, resistance gene (sul1, sul2) copies significantly increased compared to treatments with antibiotic-free manure or control, and accumulated with repeated applications. Under field conditions, the transferability of SDZ resistance was significantly increased in plots treated with manure originating from pigs medicated with SDZ. Transfer frequencies were higher in the rhizosphere compared to bulk soil. The effects of SDZ-containing manure on the abundance of sul genes in the rhizosphere of maize and grass varied between different sampling times supposedly due to climatic factors. We hypothesize that drying and re-wetting cause shifts of nutrient availability, plant exudation and bio accessible pore space, and that these shifts influence the effects of SDZ on abundance and transfer of resistance genes in soil microbial communities. In order to elucidate the effects of drying-rewetting and temperature and to clarify this missing link, the abundance of sul genes and their transferability will be investigated in samples taken from rhizosphere and rhizoplane of grass from the central field and laboratory experiments with manipulated drying and wetting cycles. Pyrosequencing of the transferable resistome in manure-treated soils will provide unique insights into plasmid diversity and other antibiotic resistance genes co-selected by SDZ.
DFG Programme
Research Units
