Microplastics mediates the spread of antimicrobial resistance plasmids via modulating conjugal gene expression

A study involving four commonly used microplastics (MPs) found that exposure to these microplastics increases the conjugation rates of four clinically relevant AMR plasmids by up to 200-fold. MPs also induce the expression of plasmid-borne conjugal genes and SOS-linked genes. The findings suggest that to tackle global AMR, we must consider plastic utilisation and waste management, as MPs pollution could significantly impact controlling AMR.