Microbes Are Evolving In Urban Environments And Developing Resistance To Common Disinfectants
New research has shown city microbes are evolving to resist the cleaners we rely on to get rid of them. It’s like they’ve leveled up in the game of survival, so our usual sprays and wipes can no longer kill them off.
Additionally, strains that were previously only found in Antarctic desert soil have now been identified in Hong Kong.
In a new study, it was discovered that novel strains of microbes have adapted to survive in cities despite the increased use of disinfectants to create cleaner urban environments following the recent pandemic.
The findings show that our everyday behavior influences the composition of microorganisms in indoor settings.
“Areas with many buildings are low in the traditional nutrients and essential resources microbes need for survival, so these built environments have a unique microbiome,” said Dr. Xinzhao Tong, the lead author of the study and an assistant professor at Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University in China.
“Our use of cleaning and other manufactured products creates a unique setting that puts selective pressures on microbes, which they must adapt to or be eliminated, but the mechanisms by which microbes adapt and survive in built environments are poorly understood.”
The research team collected 738 samples from various built environments in Hong Kong, such as subways, public facilities, piers, residences, and human skin.
They analyzed the microbes’ genomic content using shotgun metagenomic sequencing to understand how they adapted to urban conditions.
The team detected 363 microbial strains living on the skin and the surrounding environment that had not been previously identified. Some of the strains’ genomes contained genes to help them process manufactured products found in cities and use them as carbon and energy sources.
Dmitry Rukhlenko – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
One of the newly discovered strains was a strain of Candidatus phylum Eremiobacterota, which had only ever been reported in Antarctic desert soil.
“The genome of this novel strain of Eremiobacterota enables it to metabolize ammonium ions found in cleaning products. The strain also has genes for alcohol and aldehyde dehydrogenases to break down residual alcohol found in common disinfectants,” Dr. Tong said.
Microbes that have the capability to survive with limited resources and tolerate manufactured products, like metals and disinfectants, are beating out the weaker, non-resistant strains.
This advantage allows them to thrive and even evolve in built environments, making them more resilient over time. If they are pathogenic, they could pose health risks.
The researchers also identified 11 new strains of Micrococcus luteus, which are usually non-pathogenic but can cause infections in immunocompromised individuals.
According to Dr. Tong, the microbes’ adaptation to human behavior becomes a huge problem when it comes to clinical settings because diverse pathogens can thrive in hospitals, leading to hospital-acquired infections (HAIs).
Finally, the researchers characterized two novel strains of Patescibacteria, also known as nanobacteria. One of the nanobacteria strains was recovered from human skin.
It contained genes for the biosynthesis of carotenoids and ubiquinone, which are essential antioxidant compounds that humans typically acquire through diet, suggesting that the bacteria use humans as hosts.
Now, the team is working on improving practices for infection control to increase the safety of clinical environments for patients and healthcare workers.
The study was published in the journal Microbiome.
Sign up for Chip Chick’s newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox.
More About:News
Read This Next
