ArticleBMC biology2019
Meta-transcriptomics reveals a diverse antibiotic resistance gene pool in avian microbiomes.
Article in BMC biology, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 48 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
48 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Computational paradigms for antimicrobial resistance prediction: integrating multi-omics, structural modeling, and foundation artificial intelligence systems.Briefings in bioinformatics · 2026Pooled it
- AMR in wild animals and plants: global trends and future priorities in wildlife-associated antimicrobial resistance research.npj antimicrobials and resistance · 2026Article
- Multi-omics surveillance of antimicrobial resistance in the pig gut microbiome.Animal microbiome · 2025Article
- Leveraging the microbiome to combat antibiotic resistant gynecological infections.npj antimicrobials and resistance · 2025Review
- Metagenomic Insights into the Diverse Antibiotic Resistome of Non-Migratory Corvidae Species on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau.Veterinary sciences · 2025Article
- Influence of developmental stage on the antibiotic resistome and virome of the critically endangered kākāpō (Frontiers in microbiology · 2025Article
- Threats across boundaries: the spread of ESBL-positiveFrontiers in microbiology · 2025Review
- Metatranscriptomic Analysis Reveals Actively Expressed Antimicrobial-Resistant Genes and Their Hosts in Hospital Wastewater.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Molecular detection of multidrug and methicillin resistance inOne health (Amsterdam, Netherlands) · 2024Article
- Detection of SARS-CoV-2 in Wastewater Associated with Scientific Stations in Antarctica and Possible Risk for Wildlife.Microorganisms · 2024Article
- Article
- Examining Antimicrobial Resistance inAntibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Gut microbiome in two high-altitude bird populations showed heterogeneity in sex and life stage.FEMS microbes · 2024Article
- Article
- Wild Birds as Drivers ofTransboundary and emerging diseases · 2024Article
- Animal Microbiomes as a Source of Novel Antibiotic-Producing Strains.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
- Article
- Composition and function of the Galapagos penguin gut microbiome vary with age, location, and a putative bacterial pathogen.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Review
- First comparative genomic characterization of the MSSA ST398 lineage detected in aquaculture and other reservoirs.Frontiers in microbiology · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundAntibiotic resistance is rendering common bacterial infections untreatable. Wildlife can incorporate and disperse antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the environment, such as water systems, which in turn serve as reservoirs of resistance genes for human pathogens. Anthropogenic activity may contribute to the spread of bacterial resistance cycling through natural environments, including through the release of human waste, as sewage treatment only partially removes antibiotic-resistant bacteria. However, empirical data supporting these effects are currently limited. Here we used bulk RNA-sequencing (meta-transcriptomics) to assess the diversity and expression levels of functionally viable resistance genes in the gut microbiome of birds with aquatic habits in diverse locations.
resultsWe found antibiotic resistance genes in birds from all localities, from penguins in Antarctica to ducks in a wastewater treatment plant in Australia. Comparative analysis revealed that birds feeding at the wastewater treatment plant carried the greatest resistance gene burden, including genes typically associated with multidrug resistance plasmids as the aac(6)-Ib-cr gene. Differences in resistance gene burden also reflected aspects of bird ecology, taxonomy, and microbial function. Notably, ducks, which feed by dabbling, carried a higher abundance and diversity of resistance genes than turnstones, avocets, and penguins, which usually prey on more pristine waters.
conclusionsThese transcriptome data suggest that human waste, even if it undergoes treatment, might contribute to the spread of antibiotic resistance genes to the wild. Differences in microbiome functioning across different bird lineages may also play a role in the antibiotic resistance burden carried by wild birds. In summary, we reveal the complex factors explaining the distribution of resistance genes and their exchange routes between humans and wildlife, and show that meta-transcriptomics is a valuable tool to access functional resistance genes in whole microbial communities.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.