Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40993512›Full record

ArticleBMC microbiology2025

Antibiotic-resistance and virulence-related genes in commercially bottled natural mineral waters.

Giulia Radocchia, Francesca Brunetti, Massimiliano Marazzato, Daniela Scribano, Lucia Nencioni, Anna Teresa Palamara, Serena Schippa, Fabrizio Pantanella

Abstract read
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Article in BMC microbiology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Giulia RadocchiaDepartment of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy. giulia.radocchia@uniroma1.it.
Francesca BrunettiDepartment of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Massimiliano MarazzatoDepartment of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Daniela ScribanoDepartment of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Lucia NencioniDepartment of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Anna Teresa PalamaraDepartment of Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Health, Rome, Italy.
Serena Schippa *Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Fabrizio Pantanella *Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.

Funding

Sapienza Università di Roma RP12117A75F3C62D
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundTo date, the presence of antibiotics resistant genes (ARGs) and virulence-related genes (VRGs) has been evidenced in several surface waters, including natural surface water and wastewater, as well as drinking water. Bottled natural mineral waters, which are by law labelled as microbiologically pure at source, from underground aquifers, natural resurgence deposits or well suction pumps, do not undergo purification treatment, and do not experience any chemical decontamination or disinfection treatment, as in the case of drinking water from municipal conduits. The present study aimed to evaluate the presence of ARGs and VRGs, as well as the composition of microbial communities, in commercially bottled natural mineral drinking water by molecular methods. The study involved the analysis of bottled drinking water from four commercial brands. Moreover, an investigation was conducted into the potential association of known mobile elements or insertion sequences with the highlighted ARGs and VRGs.

methodsFour commercial brands of drinking mineral bottled water were selected for analysis. A volume of 100 L from each brand was filtered to recover the microbes present in the water. The microbes successfully recovered on the filter, in conjunction with eventually other particles with a diameter of 0.22 μm or greater, or associated nucleic acids, underwent a process of DNA extraction using specific extraction kit. The extracted cell-DNA was subjected to shotgun sequencing.

resultsSequence analysis revealed the presence of microbial communities associated with the water samples analyzed. Furthermore, several ARGs and VRGs were identified and, for some of them, a putative taxonomic assignment at genus level was defined.

conclusionsThe results indicated that bottled drinking water may represent a potential reservoir of antibiotic resistance and virulence genes, which could persist and be transferred to other bacteria commonly found in the same water sample, as well as to microorganisms colonizing the human consumer. The use of the new molecular methods, such as next generation sequencing (NGS), could be useful for improving current methodologies for drinking water analysis, also considering their potential role of reservoir of antibiotic resistance and virulence genes, as well as the presence of potentially pathogenic microbes that cannot be detected by conventional cultural methods.

Indexed as

BacteriaDrinking WaterDrug Resistance, BacterialMineral WatersVirulence FactorsAnti-Bacterial AgentsGenes, BacterialVirulenceWater MicrobiologyAnti-Bacterial AgentsDrinking WaterMineral WatersVirulence FactorsAntibiotic resistance genesBottled waterReservoir of antibiotic resistance genesVirulence-related genes

Identifiers

PMID40993512
PMCPMC12462320

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